Federal Cuts to Teacher Programs Threaten Dei in Massachusetts

Alameda, CA (Prism)
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As Massachusetts schools brace for another year of teacher shortages, federal cuts have left vital funding programs hanging by a thread

Massachusetts schools are still reeling from the sudden loss of millions in federal grants for teacher training, leaving programs for aspiring educators -- especially those from diverse backgrounds -- in jeopardy. An order from a federal judge in Massachusetts was blocked by the Supreme Court in April, effectively cutting over $6 million in teacher training grants. The block was issued because the programs funded through these grants were deemed as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) content, which the Trump administration has vowed to eliminate.

In February, the Department of Education eliminated millions of dollars that fund programs like the Teacher Quality Partnership and the Supporting Effective Educator Development, which provide more than $600 million in grants for teacher preparation programs, including in math, science, and special education. The move was a precursor to President Donald Trump's executive order, signed the following month, to dismantle the Department of Education by cutting contracts deemed "woke" and wasteful.

A federal judge from Massachusetts attempted to reinstate the grants in March through a temporary restraining order after eight states -- Massachusetts, California, New Jersey, Colorado, New York, Illinois, and Wisconsin -- filed a lawsuit against the Education Department, arguing that the elimination of the grants was driven by Trump's targeting of DEI efforts.

"The Trump Administration's unlawful funding cuts have recklessly disrupted programs designed to address the ongoing teacher shortage in the Commonwealth," Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell said in a statement in March, adding that students with disabilities are among those who will be impacted. "By filing this lawsuit, we seek to restore funding to these necessary programs that help increase the number of high-quality educators in some of our most in-need school districts."

Trump's cuts to federal funds have directly impacted vital programs dedicated to supporting educators, both current and future, as well as students.

The University of Massachusetts Amherst faced a significant cut with the loss of its "Para to Teacher Program," which works to prepare and license paraprofessionals, particularly those of color, to help diversify the teacher workforce, specifically at public school districts in Holyoke and Springfield. Data shows that both districts have large percentages of students with high support needs.

"We have several children who need to be assessed to see if they need those supports. The loss of the grants ... decreases the providers that can provide the screenings," said Nikki Burnett, the executive director at Educare, a national network of early childhood schools dedicated to providing quality early learning and care to young children in Springfield. "So that means that children are left unscreened for a longer amount of time. The longer children that may need supportive services go without receiving them, that makes their educational journey potentially more difficult."

The federal cuts have also impacted one of the "Teacher Pipeline" programs at Boston Public Schools. The programs were designed to offer teacher licensure, professional development, and support for teachers, particularly from diverse backgrounds.

Max Page, president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA), told Prism that these pipeline programs are crucial, especially since the state has already faced declines in the number of young people entering the teaching profession before the federal cuts. According to NBC News Boston, data shows that in 2024, 8,360 teachers did not return to the classroom, out of the 80,000 teachers in the state. School districts with larger schools and better funding have also had a higher retention rate.

Burnett warns that the federal cuts may cause an "exodus of valuable educators," as they will have less of a chance to grow in the profession because of the resulting decline in professional development programs and services.

"All of these things are going to have this really, really bad downhill spiral from the loss of this funding for these programs," Burnett said.

Several districts across Massachusetts are experiencing an increase in diversity among the student body, but a decline in diversity among educators, Page explained, which the MTA has tried to address and increase. Data from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education showed that in 2023, 45.6% of students in Massachusetts were nonwhite, an increase of 5% from the previous year. But the percentage of educators of color in the state was relatively low, with only 7.8% identifying as Black, Indigenous, and people of color.

"We have done a number of things to try to change that at the state level, but we always count on the federal programs to be there to also help, so this is going to have a very negative effect if this continues," Page said.

Page emphasized that diversity among educators is important for all students. According to the Rennie Center, access to educators of color offers students academic and personal benefits, such as improved academic performance, lower discipline rates, and higher graduation rates.

"I fear that we're going to stall on the real significant efforts that we at MTA, but also we as a state have been making to diversify the education workforce, and we can't have that stall, because the change in the demographic of students is going to continue," Page said.

In December, the Educator Diversity Act was passed in Massachusetts, a legislation aimed at increasing the representation of educators of color in the state's public schools by providing alternative teacher licensure pathways, data collection on educator diversity, and support for districts in diversifying their workforce.

"It's about reforming our teacher licensure process to give different pathways," Page said. "But all that works in tandem with federal grants that help us recruit educators, especially more diverse educators."

This story is provided as a service of the Institute for Nonprofit News’ On the Ground news wire. The Institute for Nonprofit News (INN) is a network of more than 475 independent, nonprofit newsrooms serving communities throughout the US, Canada, and globally. On the Ground is a service of INN, which aggregates the best of its members’ elections and political content, and provides it free for republication. Read more about INN here: https://inn.org/.

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