In October, two federal grants from the Department of Education were awarded to the Cal Poly School of Education totaling around $8 million. Now, one of those grants has been cut effective immediately.
Faculty members in the department said the loss of federal funding was both "demoralizing" and "devastating".
Funding for the Cal Poly INSPIRE program grant started in October. The $4.6 million over five years addresses the School of Education’s program development and local teacher shortages as well as work with local school districts on training and retention for the current workforce, according to Dr. Stephen Crutchfield.
In the blink of an eye, it was pulled.
“It's going to compound the problems that local districts are facing," Crutchfield stated.
On Feb. 10, the recently established Department of Government Efficiency stated it had “terminated 89 contracts worth $881 million" from the Department of Education. In a notification to Cal Poly faculty members within the department, the university was informed that its grant was “deemed to be inconsistent with, and no longer effectuates, Department priorities.”
It also said that the termination was in part to ensure "that the Department’s grants do not support programs or organizations that promote or take part in diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) initiatives or any other initiatives that unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or another protected characteristic."
“This may mean cuts in special education services, cuts in Title III funding, perhaps for supporting English language learners,” explained Associate Professor Tina Cheuk.
It’s not the only impact to Cal Poly. Also taking a hit is the TIER program, which Cheuk said focuses on teacher residency for bilingual education and special education in neighboring districts. In the final year of the grant, the program will lose out on almost half a million dollars.
“What has been most distressing is the chaos and abruptness for which it was canceled," she said.
Oscar Velasco was a TIER program student and now teaches at Santa Maria High School.
“I think it's devastating," Velasco said. "It's going to ultimately hurt our classrooms. I think our classroom sizes are going to increase. It's going to put more pressure on teachers to meet demands on their own or not get enough qualified teachers in the classroom.“
Velasco went on to say that the TIER program allowed him to give back to his community of Santa Maria.
“That program really prepared me the best way possible to to address the needs of my students and their parents and the community.”
“Ultimately there's individuals in our community who have the right to high-quality education," Crutchfield said.
The work will continue for both Crutchfield and Cheuk as they look for additional funding sources as well as appeal the federal cuts to continue the work of their grants.
