Durham Public Schools (DPS) could lose $3 million due to a Trump administration freeze on K-12 grant money.

On June 30, the Trump administration sent a brief note to inform states that grants, totaling $6.8 billion, and $165 million for North Carolina alone, would not be paid out as scheduled. On Monday, North Carolina attorney general Jeff Jackson announced that 24 states are suing the department of education to get those funds back.

“Congress created these programs,” said Jackson at a press conference, referring to the programs that fall under Title II, Title III, and Title IV. “It authorized funding for these programs. The Department of Education does not have the authority to now withhold those funds.”

A report from the North Carolina Justice Center found that rural schools will suffer the greatest loss of per-student funding.

Still, the Triangle’s urban districts will feel a significant impact if the funds stay frozen.

Credit: Courtesy of NCDOJ

The $3 million for DPS includes $692,000 for support for English language learners, $1.3 million for teacher and professional development, and $908,000 for student support and academic enrichment.

Wake County, per the department of public instruction, stands to lose $8 million, Chapel Hill-Carrboro would lose $466,000, and Orange County Schools would lose $375,000.

“DPS has not received additional information about the freeze,” a spokesperson told INDY. “This funding impacts teacher training, leadership development, and other evidence-based, job-embedded professional learning that supports and advances student learning.”

$3 million is not a huge portion of the roughly $700 million DPS annual budget, but recent local fights over funding show that every dollar counts in the zero-sum game of school budgeting.

The district will pay $6 million more this year, for instance, just to keep the lights on and maintain the same level of services. $3 million more in the DPS budget would be enough to fund the district’s expansion budget wishlist, including higher pay for teachers, bus drivers, special education staff, and workers with master’s degrees.

DPS will have to cut programs, or find money elsewhere in the budget to pay for them.

Jackson and other attorneys general are asking for an emergency injunction to lift the freeze.

“We’re going to try and resolve this as fast as possible so that you can all get back to what you need to be doing, which is focusing on having a successful school year,” said Jackson. “We need this to be resolved within a matter of weeks.”

Reach Reporter Chase Pellegrini de Paur at [email protected]. Comment on this story at [email protected]. 

Chase Pellegrini de Paur is a reporter for INDY, covering politics, education, and the delightful characters who make the Triangle special. He joined the staff in 2023 and previously wrote for The Ninth Street Journal.