Trump school spending cuts hit Fitchburg, other school districts

(This story has been updated with additional information.)

FITCHBURG — A sudden reversal in federal funding has some Worcester County school districts looking at unexpected bills for projects that have already begun.

According to the state, the U.S. Department of Education notified all states that the federal Education Stabilization Fund liquidation period would be ending, effective immediately. The Educational Stabilization Fund is a federal fund created in March 2020 that provided emergency relief funding to schools across the country. Districts could use the funds to provide for a wide range of projects including school renovations, staff training, school security enhancements and other uses.

Originally, districts had until March 2026 to spend all of the funds they had received that totaled nearly $270 billion across the country. However, the Trump administration announced Friday that the period to spend that funding was abruptly ending, leaving districts that still have spending left potentially footing the bill.

Across the state, approximately $106 million in Education Stabilization Fund funding is still budgeted for Massachusetts districts. Fitchburg Public Schools has the third-most in the state, with just over $6.5 million in funds earmarked for upcoming projects.

Fitchburg Superintendent Jonathan Thompson said that the district has $5.5 million budgeted for HVAC systems upgrades and $1 million in indoor-air quality improvements at Memorial Middle School and the South Street Early Learning Center.

"These critical projects were developed in direct response to COVID-19 to improve ventilation and air quality for our youngest learners," Thompson said. "The City and Fitchburg Public Schools have spent over three years advancing these improvements — conducting studies, developing designs, navigating supply chain delays, rebidding projects due to a lack of available contractors and finally awarding the bids. The unit ventilators have already been ordered and installation is scheduled to take place during the upcoming summer break, as the work requires full building access."

Thompson said currently the state has communicated with the district that reimbursement for the projects from the state is the tentative plan going forward.

"Despite this sudden and damaging decision from the federal level, the State of Massachusetts has noted they will continue to operate on a reimbursement basis for these funds while assessing next steps. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has been in direct contact with impacted superintendents and the governor's office is working closely with the attorney general’s office to monitor the situation," Thompson said.

Gov. Maura T. Healey called the Trump administration's actions "illegal" in a statement.

“At a time when students are still struggling to recover from the pandemic, we need to be doing everything we can to address learning loss and the youth mental health crisis. Instead, President Trump suddenly ripped away more than $100 million in funding that is supposed to go right to Massachusetts students and schools,” Healey said.“This action is jeopardizing mental health care and math tutoring for our students, as well as projects that are already underway to enhance school security and ensure that the air in our school buildings is clean. Massachusetts has been making important progress helping students recover from the pandemic, but President Trump is trying to take us backwards."

US Rep. Lori Trahan, whose district includes Fitchburg, called the cuts irresponsible and shortsighted.

"The Trump administration’s unnecessary cuts to federal education funding for Fitchburg, Lawrence, and Dracut are irresponsible and shortsighted,” Trahan, a Democrat, said, mentioning other communities in her district. “Our kids deserve better, and I’ll continue fighting to make sure our school districts get the federal investments they need to provide the best education possible.”

Other Worcester County districts with large sums of the funding budgeted for projects are Leominster with $1.8 million in funding and Worcester with $1.45 million in funding. Worcester Public Schools Spokesperson Dan O'Brien said that the district is still evaluating what impact the decision to end the funding early will have on the district.

Springfield Public Schools has by far the largest remaining amount of the funding with $43.7 million still remaining in the district's budget.