It is unclear how the federal government might respond.
Will mass federal layoffs affect classrooms?
The Education Department’s work force is about half the size it was on Jan. 19. Mass layoffs gutted units that focus on education research, data collection and civil rights investigations. The entire investigative staffs of several regional branches of the Office for Civil Rights were eliminated, including in Boston, Cleveland and Dallas.
Thousands of pending cases, including hundreds in the New York region, are in limbo. Most involve students with disabilities, including investigations into complaints about unequal treatment, exclusionary admissions practices or instances in which children were restrained or secluded from their classmates.
Many districts, though, do not expect to be affected significantly by the federal staffing cuts. Still, Emma Vadehra, the chief operating officer of New York City’s public school system, acknowledged last month that “we don’t know yet what the impact will be.”
“But we are watching,” Ms. Vadehra said.
What about school meals?
One of the most significant ways that federal funding touches the lives of students is through school meals. Some cities, including New York City and Rochester, N.Y., have universal free meal programs, but many districts rely on federal dollars to provide breakfast and lunch to children from low-income families.
These programs have not faced major cuts.
Still, the Trump administration eliminated an Agriculture Department initiative last month that helped schools buy fruits, vegetables and other products from local suppliers. In New York City, that program makes up a tiny portion of overall school meal funding from Washington: roughly $8 million out of $545 million total.
In Illinois, where $26 million from the program went to more than 5,200 schools and child care centers, the state superintendent, Dr. Tony Sanders, said that districts were losing money that was essential to providing students with “nutritious meals that fuel learning and growth.”