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The Trump administration is canceling millions of dollars in magnet school grant funding after New York City officials missed a Tuesday deadline to overhaul their policies regarding transgender students.
At stake is $36 million that city officials expected to flow to several schools over the next three fiscal years, beginning on Oct. 1, through the U.S. Department of Education’s Magnet School Assistance Program. Funding for school districts in Chicago and Fairfax, Virginia, was also canceled.
New York City intended to use the magnet school grants on several campuses to foster “a more racially diverse population through unique thematic programs which offer early college access coupled with career pathways and a strategic, aggressive, and targeted approach to outreach and recruitment,” according to the grant applications.
The episode represents one of the first known examples of the Trump administration canceling funding for New York City’s public schools as a result of the federal government’s contested interpretation of civil rights laws. Since taking office, Trump has waged an aggressive push to roll back protections for transgender people and has targeted several school districts.
Federal officials informed the city’s Education Department on Sept. 16 the funding was in jeopardy because they were “deeply concerned” with city policies that allow transgender students to participate in sports and use bathrooms and other school facilities in line with their gender identity. The U.S. Department of Education contended that the policies violate Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination at educational institutions that receive federal funding.
Shortly after last week’s funding threat, Mayor Eric Adams began railing against the city’s policies on transgender students in interviews and public appearances, drawing fierce backlash from state education officials and civil rights advocates who noted that the city’s policies are rooted in state law and city guidelines.
The mayor’s desire to change city policy to line up with the federal government’s demands raises fresh questions about his ties to the Trump administration, which has reportedly considered offering him a job. Earlier in the year, the Justice Department pressed federal prosecutors to drop corruption charges against Adams. (An Adams spokesperson previously denied a potential job offer played any role in the mayor’s recent criticisms of the city’s policies on trans students.)
Jumaane Williams, the city’s public advocate, said in a statement that the “the mayor and president are making trans and gender non-conforming kids less safe” and suggested the mayor was angling for a job in the Trump administration.
“I don’t know which is more disgraceful – the Trump administration ripping funding away from students’ educations in order to further its own transphobic agenda, or Mayor Adams feeding that bigotry and wishing he could rewrite it into our laws,” Williams wrote.
The letter from the federal Department of Education gave the city until Sept. 19 to agree to its demands — including adopting “biology-based definitions for the words ‘male’ and ‘female’” — or appeal.
The city Education Department’s top lawyer requested 30 days to consider whether to appeal the decision and requested more information about why the federal government was targeting a specific grant for magnet schools. She also indicated the federal government had “deprived the [city] of the procedures and due process required by federal regulations.”
But federal officials gave the city until Tuesday evening, just one week after their initial letter, to agree to the Trump administration’s demands — a deadline the city Education Department did not meet. They claimed the tight timeline was necessary because the federal government must certify compliance with civil rights laws before the end of the federal fiscal year on Sept. 30.
Department of Education spokesperson Julie Hartman said the funding was canceled because of policies that “blatantly discriminate against students based on race and sex.” She added that “parents have every right to expect an excellent education — not ideological indoctrination masquerading as ‘inclusive’ policy.”
New York City Education Department spokesperson Jenna Lyle said officials are “deeply disappointed” that the federal government denied their request for more time to consider an appeal. She said the funding supports after-school programs, specialized curriculums, and summer learning opportunities and would affect about 8,500 students in underserved communities.
“If the federal government pulls this funding, that means canceled courses and shrinking enrichment,” Lyle wrote. “That’s a consequence our city can’t afford and our students don’t deserve.”
Adams spokesperson Kayla Mamelak Altus accused the federal government of “defunding our children’s education” to extract policy concessions.
“While Mayor Adams may not agree with every rule or policy, we will always stand up to protect critical resources for our city’s 1 million students,” she wrote. “We are reviewing all of our options here — including litigation — to safeguard these important resources for our children.”
Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.
