It means cuts for a million-plus, at-risk Washington students, in about 2 days
Federal dollars support children with special needs and kids in poverty. Hundreds of millions in federal funding for Washington’s most vulnerable students will be slashed in about 2 days because our representatives in Congress failed to work out a budget agreement. The deal was, if they couldn’t make a deal, they’d just do automatic cuts.
What does this mean for kids in Washington State? The White House issued a state-by-state analysis.
Here is a breakdown for our state:
- Title I funds would be eliminated for more than 2,700 schools, cutting support for nearly 1.2 million disadvantaged students.
- Cuts to Special Education (IDEA) would eliminate federal support for more than 7,200 Washington state teachers, aides and other staff to preschool and school-aged students with disabilities.
- Head Start services would be eliminated for about 70,000 children, with an anticipated layoff of more than 14,000 teachers, assistants and other staff state-wide.
The bottom line: If sequestration occurs, your school district will be hurt. Take Seattle, where the district could face a loss of up to $3 million annually.These federal cuts are particularly devastating because they mean schools will not be able to meet the specific needs of their most at-risk students.
Please, take action. Tell your senators and representative to resolve the impasse and restore funding to our at-risk children.
