Educators Demand Protection for $16 Billion in Federal Funding for School Meals, Support for Students with Disabilities, and More

CALIFORNIA – Today, 15,000 public school educators, parents, students and community allies gathered at rallies and marches in San Diego, Los Angeles, Hanford, San Francisco and Sacramento as part of a statewide Fight for Schools day of action organized by the California Teachers Association (CTA) to demand protection for federal funding for public schools on the chopping block by the Trump Administration. There are billions of dollars at stake – California, with nearly six million public-school students, received about $16 billion in federal funding, or around $2,748 per student this year.

CTA launched a calculator today for the general public to view the funding at risk in their local school districts, including total funding at risk with details for impacts to special education and school meal programs. View that at cta.org/trumpcuts. 

CTA President David Goldberg addressed thousands gathered in San Diego before marching through Balboa Park:

“We call on the Trump Administration to stop threatening cuts to our schools and communities. We call on members of Congress to stand up against these threats and do their jobs – stand with our students and our communities. Our students rely on the school meals, special education services and other supports funded by federal dollars. We can’t afford to CUT funding. It’s time to INCREASE funding for public education – not give tax breaks to billionaires! Fighting back against the cuts proposed by the federal administration is OUR fight, and one we must lead as educators and leaders in public education. In the coming months, we will continue the fight for more funding for our schools and resist any actions by the Trump Administration that hurt our students and communities.” 

In Los Angeles, thousands of educators gathered outside of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which receives billions in tax breaks and private government contracts. Meanwhile, Musk’s dysfunctional and chaotic campaign to attack public services has put billions of Californians’ tax dollars dedicated to meals for children, support for students with disabilities and more on the line.

At the Los Angeles action, local high school student and Students Deserve activist Mariyah Williams shared with the crowd in front of SpaceX: 

“When billionaires like Trump and Elon Musk threaten to strip $1.2 billion from our schools, that’s not just a number. That’s our school lunches. That’s special education. That’s Title I funding that supports students in communities like mine. These are survival funds for LAUSD’s most vulnerable kids; we’re not going to let them take that away.”

In Hanford, Dolores Huerta – labor leader, activist and founder of the Dolores Huerta Foundation – spoke to thousands about the importance of this fight for Central Valley communities: 

“Central Valley students have been left behind in the fight for equitable education. We are constantly fighting for resources and support for our youth, including calling for transparency in service denials for students with disabilities. Cuts to federal funding will harm our schools and communities, making it even more challenging to achieve successful academic outcomes. I’m proud to stand with educators in fighting for strong public schools, protecting our most vulnerable children and families, and defending public education as the cornerstone of our democracy. Our kids and communities are counting on us.”

In Sacramento, thousands of educators were joined by parents and students, including Volma Volcy, a parent of a 4th-grade student in the Sacramento area. Addressing the crowd, he shared:

“I’ve seen firsthand how invaluable teachers are. I’ve watched as teachers have nurtured and cared for students, often paying out of their own pockets for resources for their kids. Schools are already underfunded. We need more resources, not less!” 

While the actions were held in five cities, many educators organized carpools and traveled from long distances to join the actions. In San Francisco, Celia Medina-Owens traveled in from Pittsburg across the Bay and shared:

“My district has full-service community schools. We serve the needs of our whole communities, not just our students in the classroom. Federal cuts will hurt our district’s ability to do things like provide meals to our students, which so many of our students depend on. But, they could also prevent our ability to provide anyone in our neighborhoods with the basic necessities they and their families need, like clothing and food they can access for free in our community stores. So many of our students and families are vulnerable at this moment – and we need to fight for the resources they need to survive.”

The statewide day of action comes on the heels of weeks of educator-led delegations to California’s Republican members of Congress to express similar demands. 

Federal school breakfast and lunch programs currently provide free meals to children if they belong to a family of four earning less than $39,000 annually and reduce the price of meals if the child belongs to a family of four earning less than $55,000 annually. Studies show that one in six children in California do not have enough to eat. Federal funding also enables California schools to provide services to more than 800,000 students (over 15% of all California students) with ADHD, dyslexia and other disabilities.  

Learn more about each action at cta.org/ffs.

For videos and photos of actions, visit CTA’s social media pages on Facebook and Instagram.

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The 310,000-member California Teachers Association is affiliated with the 3 million-member National Education Association.