Federal budget could cut after-school funding
A local report says the 2027 federal budget proposal would eliminate the separate 21st Century Community Learning Centers programme and fold it into a broader block, potentially cutting services that serve hundreds of students in places like Galveston County. The piece frames the change as part of a wider reshaping of discretionary education funding. (galvnews.com)
President Donald Trump’s fiscal 2027 budget proposal would end the federal government’s standalone after-school grant program and roll it into a new $2 billion block grant. (whitehouse.gov) (ed.gov) The U.S. Department of Education budget tables show 21st Century Community Learning Centers at $0 in the 2027 request, alongside other programs the administration would fold into what it calls “Make Education Great Again” grants. The department says the new grant could support activities now funded through 21st Century Community Learning Centers, teacher-training grants, literacy grants, migrant education, and other programs. (ed.gov) That change would not take effect on its own. Congress writes appropriations bills, and Congress kept 21st Century Community Learning Centers funded at $1.329 billion for fiscal 2026, according to Afterschool Alliance and the administration’s own budget documents. (afterschoolalliance.org) (ed.gov) 21st Century Community Learning Centers is the main federal stream dedicated only to after-school, before-school, and summer learning. The Education Department says the program funds academic help and enrichment for children, especially students in high-poverty and low-performing schools, during non-school hours. (ed.gov) In Texas, that money flows through Texas Afterschool Centers on Education, or Texas ACE. The Texas Education Agency says Texas ACE operates more than 650 learning centers in about 130 school districts, and a separate agency roadmap says it serves about 130,000 kindergarten-through-12th-grade students and their families across the state. (tea.texas.gov 1) (tea.texas.gov 2) In Galveston Independent School District, the district says its Texas ACE program is free to families, runs on six campuses, and is backed by a 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant awarded in 2023 that runs through 2028. The listed campuses are Ball High School, Crenshaw Elementary and Middle, Austin Elementary, Burnet Elementary, Oppe Elementary, and Parker Elementary. (gisd.org) The district says those campuses offer homework help, tutoring, enrichment activities, family events, and summer programming, with support from community partners including Groundswell’s Young Gardeners Program, Comp-u-dopt, the University of Texas Medical Branch Connect program, and Galveston Island State Park. (gisd.org) The administration argues the broader block grant would give states and districts more flexibility across several education programs. After-school advocates and state program backers have argued the opposite for years: that folding a dedicated stream into a larger pot makes it easier for after-school services to lose out to other priorities. (ed.gov) (afterschoolalliance.org) The next test is on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers will decide whether to keep a separate line for 21st Century Community Learning Centers in the fiscal 2027 spending bills. Until then, districts like Galveston can point to grants already in place, but the federal program they rely on is now on the administration’s cut list. (congress.gov) (gisd.org)
