How the Federal Education Cuts Undermine Civil Rights and Student Success—And What You Can Do to Push Back and Push Forward

By Molly Priesmeyer, MnEEP Director of Communications

And Hon. Carlos Mariani Rosa, MnEEP Executive Director

Right now, an estimated total of $65 to $79 million in federal education funding is frozen across Minnesota, affecting more than 220,000 students statewide. Minneapolis Public Schools alone is awaiting $4.5 million, while St. Paul Public Schools is missing $7.2 million from its $750 million budget.

These are not neutral budget decisions.

They are targeted rollbacks of federal Title programs—Title I, Title III, Title II-A, Title IV, and Title I-C—created to protect students most impacted by racism, poverty, language discrimination, and displacement.

This is a racialized, economic, and linguistic disinvestment that strikes hardest at those already facing the steepest barriers to a just and meaningful education.

White and wealthier districts will remain largely untouched by this freeze of federal funds.

But in schools serving low-income students, multilingual learners, Indigenous students, migrant families, and communities of color, the effects are immediate and devastating. These freezes eliminate the very protections that make a fair, inclusive education possible.

These cuts violate civil rights laws and undermine Minnesota’s constitutional duty to provide a uniform and equitable education to all learners, regardless of immigration status. 

How to Use This Resource

This guide is designed to name exactly what is happening and why it matters. It aims to shift harmful narratives and re-centers human dignity and educational rights of every student by offering:

  • A legal and constitutional lens for challenging the freeze
  • A detailed breakdown of what has been removed and who is harmed
  • Student-centered narratives that describes the impact in clear, equity-focused terms
  • Practical actions for holding decision-makers accountable and advancing justice in education. 

This is not just about documenting cuts. It’s about reaffirming what Minnesota students deserve and what the law requires.

What’s Really Being Cut: Civil Rights, Opportunity, and Minnesota’s Promise

Many of the federal programs now frozen were created to confront deep, systemic discrimination in education. Title III (English Learners), Title I-C (migrant education), and Title II-A (diverse and inclusive teacher development) are not optional add-ons.

They are civil rights obligations—hard-won protections that ensure race, gender, language, and immigration status are not barriers to education access and opportunities. 

Freezing these funds means:

  • Districts risk noncompliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on race, gender, or national origin.
  • Schools lose the ability to provide required language access and inclusive instruction.
  • Students are denied the supports they are legally entitled to under federal law.

This is Also a Violation of Minnesota Laws

The Minnesota Constitution (Art. XIII, Sec. 1) requires the state to provide a “general and uniform system of public schools.”

That means every child must have access to a full, adequate, and equitable education, regardless of race, language, income, immigration status, or ZIP code.

Minnesota law reinforces this duty in statutes:

What They’re Cutting — and Who Pays the Price

Targeted rollbacks threaten students’ rights, learning, and futures.

1. They’re Cutting Language Access

Title III Freezes Undermine EL Equity and Civil Rights

~84,050 students impacted
 Funds withheld: $11.08 million (FY24/25)

Title III supports Minnesota’s 84,000 English Learner (EL) students—roughly 1 in 10 K–12 learners—by funding bilingual educators, newcomer programs, language acquisition materials, translation and interpretation services, and family engagement.

From 2018 to 2022, Minnesota’s EL student population grew from 73,128 (8.5%) in 2018 to 77,473 (8.9%), making it one of the fastest-growing student groups in the state.

What Students Lose

  • Targeted EL instruction
  • Bilingual staff and classroom aides
  • Newcomer programs and family engagement
  • Civil rights compliance for language access

Equity Impact 

  • Deepens opportunity gaps in under-resourced districts
  • Weakens legal protections for EL students
  • Undermines the economic and social future of multilingual communities

Why This Matters for Minnesota

Research shows that when districts invest in robust EL services such bilingual instruction, family liaisons, and wraparound supports, EL students achieve higher literacy rates, stay on track to graduate, and are more likely to enroll in college. Districts that prioritize these supports also see stronger long-term outcomes, especially when paired with culturally responsive engagement.

Without Title III, schools will be forced to scale back or eliminate these critical services, resulting in widening disparities and weakening the state’s ability to meet its legal and moral obligations to educational equity and state economic goals.

2. They’re Dismantling Culturally Responsive Education

Title II-A Cuts Gut Training for Equity, Belonging, and Legal Compliance

~60,000 students impacted
 Funds withheld: $26.59 million (FY24/25)

Minnesota classrooms are increasingly diverse. Nearly 36% of school-age children are students of color, and in districts like St. Paul, learners speak more than 115 languages. There, 78% of students identify as students of color, and 28% are English Learners (ELs).

To support their academic and social success, Minnesota law (Minn. Stat. § 122A.40) requires culturally responsive teaching professional development as part of teacher licensure and evaluation. Title II-A funding makes this possible by supporting professional development that equips educators to engage students’ diverse cultural, racial, and linguistic identities, interrupt bias, and create inclusive, affirming classrooms.

What Students Lose

  • Educators trained to reflect and affirm students’ racial, cultural, and linguistic identities
  • Inclusive instruction that supports engagement, achievement, and belonging
  • Diverse and multilingual teachers with the tools to meet students’ varied needs
  • Professional learning that interrupts bias and opportunity  gaps

Equity Impact

  • Violates state law mandating culturally responsive teaching
  • Disrupts legal compliance and PD infrastructure in Title I schools
  • Undermines recruitment and retention of teachers of color

Why This Matters for Minnesota

Numerous studies show that sustained, equity-centered professional development improves student achievement in both math and reading, particularly when teachers are trained in culturally responsive practices.

Culturally validating instruction not only supports academic success, it also strengthens student engagement, belonging, and motivation, especially for students of color.

Without Title II‑A funding, Minnesota risks turning a legal mandate into an unfunded requirement. The result will be teachers less prepared to meet students where they are, and classrooms that fail to reflect and affirm the racial, cultural, and linguistic identities of the students they serve.

3. They’re Denying Migrant Students Their Rights

Title I-C Freezes Disrupt Education and Support for Mobile Learners

~1,500–2,000 students impacted
 Funds withheld: $919,671 (FY24/25)

Minnesota supports several thousand migrant students and families, often from seasonal agricultural backgrounds. These learners depend on Title I‑C to remain connected to consistent education across moves.

What Students Lose

  • Summer bridge and academic continuity programs
  • Bilingual family outreach, transportation, and health services
  • Support networks during periods of transition

Equity Impact

  • Migrant students are among the highest-need learners; losing Title I‑C deepens disparities
  • Rural districts with agricultural workforces lose critical continuity supports
  • Many of these students have no other tailored resources outside this federal fund

Why This Matters for Minnesota

Minnesota’s Migrant Education Program has helped over 90% of mobile students in grades 7–12 stay on track to graduate or advance to the next grade. Title I-C provides the stability these students need to stay connected to school, even as their families move for work. 

When schools can’t meet the legal and learning needs of mobile students, families are cut off from opportunity, civil rights are eroded, and rural communities lose connection to the very students who help sustain them.

4. They’re Undoing Community Learning 

21st CCLC Cuts Strip After-School Enrichment and Family Connection

~40,000 students impacted
 Funds withheld: ~$13.8 million

After-school hours are a critical window for students to receive support, build confidence, and connect with their communities. Minnesota’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLCs) have served as a backbone of enrichment in high-need schools, especially for students of color and those from low-income households.

In 2017–2018, 93% of youth in Minnesota’s 21st CCLC programs were students of color, and 89% were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. 

What Students Lose

  • Tutoring and academic support beyond the school day
  • STEM clubs, arts programs, and youth leadership development
  • Multicultural learning experiences and SEL support
  • Trusted connections between schools, families, and communities

Equity Impact

  • Removes one of the only extended learning streams for low-income students
  • Disproportionately affects EL, migrant, Indigenous, and students of color
  • Removes community-based learning infrastructure
  • Widens opportunity gaps by eliminating enrichment and wraparound services that support whole-child development

Why This Matters for Minnesota

These programs extend opportunity into evenings, summers, and weekends. For many students, they are lifelines, providing safe, affirming spaces to learn, connect, and grow. Cutting them shrinks the learning day, disrupts school-community ties, and undermines one of Minnesota’s strongest levers for whole-child equity.

Research shows Minnesota CCLCs are critical for student success: During the 2022-2023 school year in Minnesota, 67% of participants improved school-day attendance, 48% raised their GPA, and 86% showed stronger classroom engagement.

5. They’re Erasing Whole-Child Supports

Title IV-A Cuts Eliminate SEL, Mental Health, and Identity-Affirming Learning

~35,000 students impacted
 Funds withheld: $13.8 million (FY24/25)

Title IV-A supports whole-child learning in Minnesota, and its impact is especially significant for students of color. More than 80% of students in Title I schools identify as students of color. Without these funds, the state strips away critical supports—from mental health services to enriched learning environments—that are essential for the very communities Title IV-A is meant to serve.

What Students Lose

  • After-school and STEM enrichment clubs
  • Social-emotional (SEL) mental health counseling programs
  • Arts and multicultural curriculum programming
  • Opportunities for leadership, empowerment, and identity exploration

Equity Impact

  • Cuts erase supports that foster engagement and academic gains in low-wealth schools
  • Loss of culturally affirming practices disproportionately affects students of color, Indigenous students, and EL students
  • Eliminates critical wraparound services that support the whole learner

Why This Matters for Minnesota

Without Title IV-A, schools lose the capacity to support students beyond academics. These cuts erode the foundation of whole-child learning and leave students in high-need schools without critical supports that foster growth and success.

National research shows that social-emotional learning (SEL) programs can improve academic performance by an average of 11 percentile points, reduce emotional distress, and strengthen classroom behavior and resilience.

Moreover, whole-child initiatives that include SEL, mental health, and arts programming lead to stronger school engagement, fewer disciplinary actions, and better long-term academic outcomes, especially in schools serving historically marginalized students.

What You Can Do: Push Back / Push Forward

Whether you’re a parent, educator, policymaker, or advocate, here are tangible ways to push back against harmful disinvestment, and push forward toward a racially just education system that fosters inclusion and belonging for every learner. 

For Parents & Families

  • Speak out at school board meetings. Ask how your district is responding to the loss of Title funds. Push for transparency and equity-centered priorities.
  • Contact your state and federal lawmakers. Demand restoration of funding, and push for state-level backfill if needed.
  • Join or organize regional advocacy groups. Or connect with other families, educators, students, and advocates at MnEEP designing solutions for inclusive, racially just, and well-funded schools.

For Educators

  • Document the impact. Collect stories and data showing how cuts affect student learning, services, and teacher development.
  • Organize with colleagues. Push your union or professional networks to advocate publicly for restored funding, legal compliance, and racially equitable learning environments. 

For School & District Leaders

  • Conduct equity impact reviews. Ensure budget decisions center those most affected. Share findings publicly.
  • Make data visible. Show what’s being lost due to frozen Title funds—by school, program, and student group.
  • Comply with civil rights laws. Ensure schools continue to meet their obligations under Title VI and related statutes, even amid funding gaps.

For Policymakers & Advocates

  • Hold oversight hearings. Demand accountability for the freeze and investigate its impact on Minnesota’s legal obligations.
  • Push for state backfill or contingency funding. If federal funds remain frozen, Minnesota must uphold its Constitutional promise.
  • Frame the narrative. Name these cuts for what they are: a civil rights rollback. Elevate stories and data to mobilize public response.

This Is a Moment of Public Responsibility

These cuts are not just harmful policy failures. They are a test of whether Minnesota will uphold the rights of students who have too often been left behind.

Every student’s success is tied to our shared future. Ensuring that future means refusing to normalize disinvestment, and recommitting to the legal and moral obligations at the heart of public education and education equity.

Additional Tools & Resources

Sign up for MnEEP Advocacy Tools and Action Alerts
https://www.mneep.org/become-a-member/

MDE – English Learner Task Force Report (2025)
 https://www.lrl.mn.gov/docs/2025/mandated/250663.pdf

MDE – Overview of Federal Education Funds (2025)
https://assets.senate.mn/committees/2025-2026/3119_Committee_on_Education_Finance/20250104_MDE-Overview-of-Federal-Education-Funds.pdf

Afterschool Alliance – Federal Freeze Response (July 2025)
 https://www.afterschoolalliance.org/afterschoolsnack/Release-the-funds-Responding-to-withholding-of-21st-CCLC-funds_07-07-2025.cfm

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