by Augustus Mays
This week, as our nation marks the 60th anniversary of Title I — the federal education funding lifeline created to ensure all students, regardless of income, get a fair shot at an excellent public education — President Trump continues to pursue his chaos-driven agenda.
Under a new directive from the Trump administration, states must certify they’re not using federal dollars to support so-called “divisive” diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts or risk losing Title I funding altogether. This isn’t just a bureaucratic warning — it’s a dangerous escalation in the administration’s crusade to defund public education. This will only punish schools serving students from low-income families, students of color, and those from other underserved communities.
In plain terms, funding for instructional materials, special education, tutoring, after-school programs, and other crucial resources is at risk — all to satisfy an imaginary culture war. Rural communities and low-income districts will be hit hardest — and the very children Title I was created to support are being sacrificed.
This isn’t new — it’s just the latest threat to punish students with the most needs. In his first term, Trump attempted to slash education funding. Now, he’s back in the White House and doubling down. Besides working to dismantle the Department of Education, this administration has invited states like Oklahoma to gut Title I and other federal education funding through block grants. This would give states a blank check with no federal oversight, and allow politicians to redirect education funds however they want, even if they have nothing to do with schools.
This is the playbook: sow chaos, starve public schools, demonize equity, and pretend privatization is the only solution left. But it’s not just wrong — it’s un-American. And it violates everything Title I stands for.
Title I was never supposed to be used as a political tool.
When President Lyndon Johnson signed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in 1965, he called education “the only valid passport from poverty.” We call it a bridge to success. Title I was a promise that the federal government would do its part to support students in schools where local and state dollars fell short. Title I was never supposed to be used as a political tool; it was meant to level the playing field.
For 60 years, every U.S. president has kept that promise — until now.
Math, reading, and special education teachers could leave.
Let’s be crystal clear: without Title I funding, school district leaders will have to face hard dilemmas as to whether to cut staff, increase class sizes, reduce access to essential services, or end vital resources — such as individualized supports for students to succeed in math and reading, after-school tutoring, even transportation, for the very kids who need them most.
The effects will ripple far beyond the classroom. Entire communities — particularly in rural America— could suffer. Math, reading, and special education teachers could leave, exacerbating already existing teacher shortage problems. The underserved will continue to be underserved. Opportunities for students will vanish. Futures that could have been bright will dim.
We cannot stand by while this administration rewrites the rules.
We’ve seen this before. History has already taught us that when states are left unchecked, federal dollars meant for students in need too often get diverted elsewhere. That’s why Title I comes with guardrails — not red tape. And it’s why attempts to send Title I dollars in the form of block grants to states are a Trojan horse designed to dismantle those very protections.
We cannot stand by while this administration rewrites the rules and rewinds the clock on six decades of progress.
Congress must act to protect students. And we, the public, must demand better for our kids — all of them.
If they allow Title I to be gutted now, it tells a generation of students that their future is negligible and negotiable. That they’re not worth the investment. That education is no longer a passport out of poverty but a political bargaining chip.
We refuse to let that be the legacy of this moment.
Augustus Mays is vice president of Partnerships and Engagement at EdTrust.
Source: Seattle Medium
