Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia, seen here in this file photo reading to students, said Holyoke Public Schools is working with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to understand the “true impact” of the cut.
Reminder Publishing file photo
With more tough news of federal funding cuts being announced from the Trump administration, the Healey-Driscoll administration is condemning the administration’s illegal move to terminate $106 million in K-12 education grant funding for Massachusetts.
On March 28 at 5:03 p.m., the U.S. Department of Education notified all states about its decision to end the federal Education Stabilization Fund liquidation period effective three minutes prior, at 5 p.m.
Nationally, it is estimated that this decision terminates over $2 billion across 41 states.
In February, the Trump administration reaffirmed that Massachusetts had until March 2026 to spend the funds.
Many schools and school districts across the state will have to juggle with the loss of funding including Holyoke Public Schools, which is set to lose $395,863; Mater Dolorosa Catholic School in Holyoke, set to lose $118,894 and Saint Stanislaus School in Chicopee, losing $172,692 in funding.
Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia spoke about the news and its impacts in a Facebook post.
He explained that the U.S. Department of Education’s recent decision to terminate their previously approved extension of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds has cut $395,863 from Holyoke Public Schools. The termination of the committed funds is creating a budget gap at the moment, Garcia said.
He further explained that currently, the department is working with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to understand the “true impact” of the cut and will then evaluate options moving forward.
Garcia said the cuts are “likely” to affect the following programs/projects: Families in Transition program, OPM and Designer Services, Dean/Morgan Rooftop Unit Replacement, McMahon and Lawrence Windows and Sullivan Multi-Use Outdoor Pavilion.
The Families in Transition program has been provided through a district contract with Behavioral Health Network to provide services to families.
The OPM and Designer Services would have a district contract with Accenture and Architect EL to complete the Sullivan HVAC project that had included replacing the school boiler and providing ventilation in the gym and cafeteria.
The Dean/Morgan Rooftop Unit Replacement would have been provided through a district contract with Fontaine to replace multiple rooftop air handlers.
The McMahon and Lawrence Windows would have been provided through a district contract with Lizotte and R&R Window to replace windows and doors as part of an accelerated repair project.
Finally, the Sullivan Multi-Use Outdoor Pavilion would have been provided through a district contract with Larochelle construction to install a roof. The project is complete except for some painting.
Reminder Publishing reached out to the Saint Stanislaus School in Chicopee but said, “At this time we have no comment.”
Reminder Publishing also reached out to Mater Dolorosa Catholic School in Holyoke for comment, but did not respond by press time.
