The recent announcement about the federal government withholding more than $50 million in education funds to Connecticut school districts will end up harming wealthier and poorer municipalities, education advocates say.
The cutbacks are part of a wider move by the Trump administration to withhold $6 billion in grants for school districts nationwide. In Connecticut, districts like Bridgeport are particularly vulnerable to the cuts and could stand to lose millions, according to education officials.
Joslyn Delancey, Connecticut Education Association vice president, said the recent federal withholdings – and subsequent funding cuts introduced by the “Big Beautiful Bill” – are introducing a lot of uncertainty to local districts, and will have an impact outside the classroom.
“It's going to impact every single area, from the classroom to sports to our extracurricular activities,” Delancey said. “And it's really just going to decimate our public school systems in a way that will be hard to go through, especially since we saw issues with the state committing to teacher salaries and class size in this last legislative session.”
Joe Sokolovic, a member of the Board of Education in Bridgeport, said the city is already facing budget cuts due to what he characterized as years of state underfunding.
Bridgeport’s school board approved a $304 million budget in late June, down from the previously requested $348 million. The budget was approved before the federal funds were frozen by the Trump administration.
Sokolovic criticized the federal government for withholding the money, which he said is around $3.8 million for Bridgeport. But he also said the state bears responsibility for historically underfunding the district.
“Connecticut has underfunded our inner city schools to the tune of tens of millions of dollars,” Sokolovic said.
Delancey agrees and said the federal impacts would worsen long-standing funding issues. Cities like Bridgeport have already high mill rates, which leave little wiggle room for budget increases, she said.
Rural areas are also vulnerable due to how much they rely on school programs to address community needs, she said. CEA President Kate Dias’ said SNAP cuts introduced by the Trump spending package could also translate into children losing access to school meals.
The federal funding shake-ups could also impact who gets to enter the teaching profession, by overhauling student loan reimbursements, Delancey said.
“We already have a teacher shortage, and now limiting our people's access to being able to be a part of those programs,” Delancey said.
