As the government shutdown moves forward, many are wondering what impact it will have on K-12 schools. The shutdown officially commenced at midnight EST on October 1st when the new fiscal year was to begin.
Initially, the shutdown is expected to have fairly imperceptible impact on schools and school districts, but the pause in federal funding will create some noticeable disruptions for school districts and state education agencies. Some examples include pauses in Office for Civil Rights (OCR) investigations, new grant making activities, and technical assistance support.
Of note is the drastic decrease in U.S. Department of Education staff, which will result in only 330 of 2,447 of its employees remaining on the job. This follows a decrease in USDE staff from 4,133 at the beginning of the year to 2,447 as of September 28th. In total, the USDE is only expected to retain 5% of its workforce during the first week of the shutdown. Those continuing to work will not be paid during that time.
School districts qualifying for Impact Aid, which is the only federal K-12 education program not forward-funded months in advance, will see a pause in receiving those funds. Similarly, the National Head Start Association (NHSA), an advocacy group that represents Head Start families and its workforce, has warned that if a shutdown continues for weeks or months, there will be a higher risk of program closures and staff furloughs, which will affect about three-quarters of a million children.
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