Federal education funding freeze impacts 27,000 Georgia students and after-school programs

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Georgia programs impacted by federal education funding freeze

Credit: U.S. Department of Education Website

The U.S. Department of Education has frozen billions of dollars in school grants, impacting school districts and after-school programs in Georgia. 

2025 Funds for the 21st Century Community Learning Centers, or CLCC grants, are being withheld by the federal government, leaving some Georgia after-school and summer care programs in a state of confusion.

Statewide After-School Network Director Katie Landes said Georgia’s CLCC grant allocation was over $40 million and serves 27,000 students.

"This funding in Georgia, around 60% of the grantees are school districts, and so this is often a primary source of funding for a school district. To operate after-school or summer programming is particularly as important in some of our more rural communities in Georgia," she said. 

The freeze in funding may or may not be permanent, Landes said, but it is causing confusion for grantees.

"For those sites who may not be able to operate the same way or at all if they don't have access to funds," she said. "This could be, it has the potential to be a big surprise for families and to really have some disastrous consequences for a family who are expecting a safe and enriching place for their child to go to after the school day ends while they are at work that they may not have access to."

On Monday, State School Superintendent Richard Woods released a statement calling for the release of withheld funds. 

“I deeply believe in fiscal responsibility, which means evaluating the use of funds and seeking out efficiencies, but also means being responsible — releasing funds already approved by Congress and signed by President Trump," he said. "In Georgia, we’re getting ready to start the school year, so I call on federal funds to be released so we can ensure the success of our students."