Over the last few weeks, after school programs across the country have had to tell parents to make alternate plans and school districts across the country have had to scramble as President Trump has illegally withheld federal funding for K-12 schools and adult education programs for the coming school year — and at this very moment, schools in Washington state are crunching the numbers to figure out how many teachers they will need to lay off as Trump continues to hold up billions in funding.
As a former preschool teacher, I know just how stressful and disruptive this has been for teachers, schools, and parents across the state. Just weeks out from the new school year, families and teachers across La Conner are anxiously waiting to find out whether this critical funding will ever arrive, for no reason at all — except that President Trump has simply decided he doesn’t feel like getting it out. And this administration still refuses to offer a single explanation for why the money is held up or when we can expect it to go out.
After we spoke up, and after weeks of unnecessary chaos, the Trump administration is finally releasing funding for before and after-school programs, but it is still blocking billions more in urgently needed support for our students, teachers, and schools. That is unacceptable. Every single penny of this funding must go out immediately. President Trump should follow the law and release these funds now — no delays, no excuses.
I want families in La Conner, and across Washington state, to know that I am always fighting for you in the other Washington. I will not stand by while President Trump and Russ Vought sabotage our students’ futures. I know that local school districts don’t have the luxury of waiting out lengthy court proceedings to access the funding they’re owed, nor do they have the means to make up the shortfall, especially not at a moment’s notice. Every day that this funding is held up is a day that school districts across Washington state are forced to worry about whether they’ll have to cut vital resources or lay off teachers — instead of worrying about how to make sure our kids can succeed. That’s just wrong.
We all need to speak up and be loud, because we have seen that even this administration isn’t immune from public pressure. I am going to keep pushing until every dollar goes out to schools in La Conner, and across Washington state and the entire country.
