Fall River's Diman will lose $115K as Trump's education cuts shock state. What to know.
FALL RIVER — On Friday, the Trump administration cut $106 million in education funding slated for Massachusetts students to address pandemic learning loss and the youth mental health crisis. Because of that, Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School will lose $115, 465.
In February, the Trump administration reaffirmed that Massachusetts recipients had until March 2026 — 120 days after the original deadline — to spend the grant money from a COVID-era Education Stabilization Fund. However, on Friday, at 5:03 p.m., the federal Department of Education notified all states that it had 'reconsidered your request' and terminated the program at 5 p.m. on March 28, three minutes before the statement was sent.
Diman's Superintendent Brian Bentley confirmed the loss of the applied for grant would impact plans for next school year to implement 'services to students' that 'we don't normally provide during the school day.' Bentley said the funding would have been used to 'call upon outside consultants,' including mental health professionals to serve students, and professional development for instructors to assist in their response to students who are exhibiting mental health challenges.
In addition to 'filling gaps' in mental health support services, Bentley maintained that after-school programs, such as math tutoring or instructional materials with a focus on science 'would be cut.'
Specialty consultants who already serve Diman students or after-school instructors who invite students to participate in supplemental programming on a year-round basis will not be impacted this year, but next year, with plans in progress now off the table. 'We are already looking at contracts for next year,' Bentley said.
'If you're going to continue with those kinds of services, you would have to turn to the state or you would have to fund it out of your regular appropriation budget,' he said, speaking on behalf of public or vocational schools throughout the state.
'We're at 'minimum school spending,' which means that we only budget for things that we normally do year after year,' Bentley added, explaining no line items on the usual budget are on the chopping block.
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According to the United States Department of Education, other programs at risk in other school districts statewide involve literacy, math and science. Awarded money could have targeted enhanced screenings to identify students' risk of poor reading outcomes, including risk of dyslexia.
Surveillance cameras, door alarms and emergency response technology could have been purchased to enhance school security.
To Bentley, the federal funding that was committed until it was revoked last week was 'to help gateway cities like Fall River deal with extra money to call in consultants,' he said, and 'maybe even hire teachers' to help the neediest students in the district.
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With money in hand, school districts may have qualified for new HVAC system installation or could have built outdoor learning spaces, said Bentley. 'Projects were well underway in most schools,' he said.
In New Bedford, initiatives were in motion to add a new student health center, install heating and air conditioning systems, and a variety of facility upgrades were planned to enhance the learning environment, New Bedford Public Schools Public Affairs Manager Arthur Motta said in a statement.
Motta called the steep cuts an 'erroneous claw-back' that hopefully 'will ultimately be reversed,' he said, joining Gov. Maura Healey in condemning the reversal of committed awards. Healey's administration called the withdrawal of funding 'illegal.'
This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Diman's plans to fund after-school mental health services get the axe
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