Detroit schools are facing some of the deepest cuts to federal funding in the country as The White House withholds $6.2 billion of funds nationwide.

The appropriations were already approved by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump.

But the administration informed states that they would be withholding the funding for five programs that support educator development, student enrichment programs, migrant education, English learners and 21st-century learning centers.

While data isn鈥檛 available for the program supporting migrant education, federal data organized by shows that Michigan stands to lose $81.6 million across the other four programs 鈥� accounting for more than $65 per student in the state.

The deepest cuts are in areas represented in Congress by Democrats, with those school districts facing a loss of $45 million compared to nearly $36.6 million in areas represented by a Republican.

That鈥檚 an average of $7.5 million per school district in Democratic areas compared to $5.2 million per district in Republican areas.

Michigan鈥檚 seven Republican members of Congress represent 713,666 students, while the six Democrats in Michigan鈥檚 congressional delegation represent 530,785 students.

On average, school districts represented by a Democrat would lose about $84 per student, while school districts represented by Republicans would lose about $51 per student.

That鈥檚 a reversal from the national trend, where the average school district represented by a Republican would lose 1.6 times as much funding per pupil than those represented by a Democrat.

That鈥檚 in part because while 91 of the 100 school districts nationwide facing the deepest cuts are in Republican congressional districts, Detroit is one of the ten districts with the most funding at risk.

They would lose the third most funding nationwide for student support and enrichment programs and the sixth most funding for education development.

In total, the district has more than $16 million on the line.

U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Detroit) represents the hardest hit congressional district, which stands to lose about $210 per student, followed by U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) at about $87 per pupil.

The school district has the highest poverty rate across the 46 states for which data was available at 46.9%.

Detroit Public Schools Superintendent Nikolai Vitti could not be reached for comment.

Zahava Stadler is the project director of the Education Funding Equity Initiative in the Education Policy Program at New America.

She told Michigan Advance that highly impoverished districts are likely to face significant cuts since poverty rates are a consideration for some federal grants.

鈥淗igher poverty districts are going to be hit again and again and again as the federal government dithers over whether or not to release all of these individual funding streams to which school districts are legally entitled,鈥� Stadler said.

The federal government withholding the already-allocated funding has made it even more difficult for schools to plan their budgets after the Republican-led Michigan House of Representatives by their deadline of July 1.

Even if school districts are able to maintain the programs through other funding sources, Stadler said they wouldn鈥檛 be able to then reimburse those funds later on if the federal funds came through.

鈥淢oney can鈥檛 just get moved around at will,鈥� Stadler said. 鈥淔ederal dollars have rules. And the administration is throwing districts into chaos as they are rapidly approaching a new school year.鈥�

Beyond the programs themselves having an impact on students, Stadler said the fight over funding also symbolizes the wrong message for the students who benefit from them.

鈥淭he message that these kids are getting is that their country doesn鈥檛 want to invest in them, their schools aren鈥檛 able to invest in them,鈥� Stadler said. 鈥淎nd that is a really difficult and tragic thing to hear as a young person who is just trying to grow and thrive in a community of which they鈥檙e a member.鈥�

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Michigan Advance maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jon King for questions: info@michiganadvance.com.

The nation鈥檚 historically Black colleges and universities, known as HBCUs, are wondering how to survive in an uncertain and contentious educational climate as the Trump administration downsizes the scope and purpose of the U.S. Department of Education 鈥� while cutting away at for higher education.

In January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order pausing federal grants and loans, alarming HBCUs, where most students rely on Pell Grants or federal aid. The order was , but ongoing cuts leave key support systems in political limbo, said Denise Smith, deputy director of higher education policy and a senior fellow at The Century Foundation, a left-leaning think tank.

Leaders worry about Trump鈥檚 rollback of the Justice40 Initiative, a climate change program that relied on HBCUs to tackle environmental justice issues, she said. And there鈥檚 uncertainty around programs such as federal work-study and TRIO, which provides college access services to disadvantaged students.

鈥淧eople are being mum because we鈥檙e starting to see a chilling effect,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 real fear that resources could be lost at any moment 鈥� even the ones schools already know they need to survive.鈥�

Most students at HBCUs rely on Pell Grants or other federal aid, and a fifth of Black college graduates matriculate from HBCUs. Other minority-serving institutions, known as MSIs, that focus on Hispanic and American Indian populations also heavily depend on federal aid.

鈥淚t鈥檚 still unclear what these cuts will mean for HBCUs and MSIs, even though they鈥檙e supposedly protected,鈥� Smith said.

States may be unlikely to make up any potential federal funding cuts to their public HBCUs. And the schools already have been underfunded by states compared with predominantly white schools.

Congress created public, land-grant universities under the to serve the country鈥檚 agricultural and industrial industries, providing 10 million acres taken from tribes and offering it for public universities Auburn and the University of Georgia. But Black students were excluded.

The required states to either integrate or establish separate land-grant institutions for Black students 鈥� leading to the creation of many HBCUs. These schools have since faced chronic underfunding compared with their majority-white counterparts.

鈥楴one of them are equitable鈥�

In 2020, the average endowment of white land-grant universities was $1.9 billion, compared with just $34 million for HBCUs, to Forbes.

There are other HBCUs that don鈥檛 stem from the 1890 law, including well-known private schools such as Fisk University, Howard University, Morehouse College and Spelman College. But , meaning state lawmakers play a significant role in their funding and oversight.

Marybeth Gasman, an endowed chair in education and a distinguished professor at Rutgers University, isn鈥檛 impressed by what states have done for HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions so far. She said she isn鈥檛 sure there is a state model that can bridge the massive funding inequities for these institutions, even in states better known for their support.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think North Carolina or Maryland have done a particularly good job at the state level. Nor have any of the other states. Students at HBCUs are funded at roughly 50-60% of what students at [predominately white institutions] are funded. That鈥檚 not right,鈥� said Gasman.

鈥淢ost of the bipartisan support has come from the U.S. Congress and is the result of important work by HBCUs and affiliated organizations. I don鈥檛 know of a state model that works well, as none of them are equitable.鈥�

Under federal law, federal land-grant funding are required to match every dollar with state funds.

But in 2023, the Biden administration sent letters to 16 governors warning them that their public Black land-grant institutions had been by more than $12 billion over three decades.

Tennessee State University alone had a $2.1 billion gap with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

At a February 聽hosted by the Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators, Tennessee State interim President Dwayne Tucker said the school is focused on asking lawmakers this year for money to keep the school running.

Otherwise, Tucker said at the time, the institution could run out of cash around April or May.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 real money. That鈥檚 the money we should work on,鈥� Tucker said, according to a video of the forum.

In some states, lawsuits to recoup long-standing underfunding have been one course of action.

In Maryland, was reached in 2021 to address decades of underfunding at four public HBCUs.

In Georgia, in 2023 for underfunding of three HBCUs.

In Tennessee, a recent state report found Tennessee State University has been shortchanged roughly $150 million to $544 million over the past 100 years.

But Tucker said he thinks filing a lawsuit doesn鈥檛 make much sense for Tennessee State.

鈥淭here鈥檚 no account payable set up with the state of Tennessee to pay us $2.1 billion,鈥� Tucker said at the February forum. 鈥淎nd if we want to make a conclusion about whether [that money] is real or not 鈥� you鈥檙e going to have to sue the state of Tennessee, and I don鈥檛 think that makes a whole lot of sense.鈥�

Economic anchors

, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands, though a large number of HBCUs are concentrated in the South.

Alabama has the most, with 14, and Pennsylvania has the farthest north HBCU.

Beyond education, HBCUs roughly $15 billion annually to their local economies, generate more than 134,000 jobs and create $46.8 billion in career earnings, proving themselves to be economic anchors in under-resourced regions.

Homecoming events at HBCUs significantly bolster local economies, local studies show. North Carolina Central University鈥檚 homecoming contributes approximately $2.5 million to Durham鈥檚 economy annually.

Similarly, Hampton University鈥檚 2024 homecoming was projected to inject around $3 million into the City of Hampton and the coastal Virginia region, spurred by increased visitor spending and retail sales. In Tallahassee, Florida A&M University鈥檚 2024 homecoming week in October generated about $5.1 million from Sunday to Thursday.

Their significance is especially pronounced in Southern states 鈥� such as North Carolina, where just 16% of four-year schools but serve 45% of the state鈥檚 Black undergraduate population.

Smith has been encouraged by what she鈥檚 seen in states such as Maryland, North Carolina and Tennessee, which have a combined 20 HBCUs among them. Lawmakers have taken piecemeal steps to expand support for HBCUs through policy and funding, she noted.

Tennessee became the first state in 2018 to appoint a full-time statewide higher education official dedicated to HBCU success for institutions such as Fisk and Tennessee State. Meanwhile, North Carolina launched a bipartisan, bicameral HBCU Caucus in 2023 to advocate for its 10 HBCUs, known as the NC10, and spotlight their $1.7 billion annual economic impact.

鈥淲e created a bipartisan HBCU caucus because we needed people in both parties to understand these institutions鈥� importance. If you represent a district with an HBCU, you should be connected to it,鈥� said North Carolina Democratic Sen. Gladys Robinson, an alum of private HBCU Bennett College and state HBCU North Carolina A&T State University.

鈥淚t took constant education 鈥� getting folks to come and see, talk about what was going on,鈥� she recalled. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like beating the drum constantly until you finally hear the beat.鈥�

For Robinson, advocacy for HBCUs can be a tough task, especially when fellow lawmakers aren鈥檛 aware of the stories of these institutions. North Carolina A&T was among the 1890 land-grant universities historically undermatched in federal agricultural and extension funding.

The NC Promise Tuition Plan, launched in 2018, reduced in-state tuition to $500 per semester and out-of-state tuition to $2,500 per semester at a handful of schools that now include HBCUs Elizabeth City State University and Fayetteville State University; Western Carolina University, a Hispanic-serving institution; and UNC at Pembroke, founded in 1887 to serve American Indians.

Through conversations on the floor of the General Assembly, and with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, Robinson advocated to ensure Elizabeth City State 鈥� a struggling HBCU 鈥� was included, which helped revive enrollment and public investment.

鈥淚鈥檓 hopeful because we鈥檝e been here before,鈥� Robinson said in an interview.

鈥淭hese institutions were built out of churches and land by people who had nothing, just so we could be educated,鈥� Robinson said. 鈥淲e have people in powerful positions across the country. We have to use our strength and our voices. Alumni must step up.

鈥淚t鈥檚 tough, but not undoable.鈥�

Meanwhile, other states are working to recognize certain colleges that offer significant support to Black college students. California last year creating a Black-serving Institution designation, the first such title in the country. Schools must have programs focused on Black achievement, retention and graduation rates, along with a five-year plan to improve them. Sacramento State is among the first receiving the designation.

And this session, California state Assemblymember Mike Gipson, a Democrat, introduced legislation that proposes a $75 million grant program to support Black and underserved students over five years through the Designation of California Black-Serving Institutions Grant Program. The bill was most recently referred to the Assembly鈥檚 appropriations committee.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org.

She and 15 other students had started at the college that fall in the hopes of studying to become highly effective educators. Many of them planned to return to their rural communities after graduation to help fill a gaping teacher shortage. They were all recipients of full-tuition scholarships through the , a three-year, federally funded project meant to diversify and increase the number of teachers in Nebraska and Kansas.

What they learned that February afternoon has left many of them reeling and questioning what comes next: Abrupt federal cuts from the Trump administration 鈥� meant to root out 鈥凄贰滨鈥� practices 鈥� resulted in every one of them losing their scholarships, effective immediately. They鈥檇 be able to finish out the spring term, but as of May, the money would be gone. Of the 16 students, 14 are first-time freshmen, just beginning their higher education journeys.

鈥淚 knew we were going to get told something terrible, but I couldn鈥檛 put a stop to it,鈥� said Vianey, who asked to be identified by her first name only because of concerns that speaking out in the media could have negative ramifications. 鈥淭o me, this scholarship was my way out. It was my way to be something. To contradict all the odds that were placed on me,鈥� she added as her voice broke and she began to cry.

鈥淚鈥檝e wanted to be a teacher my whole life. Now, with all of this happening, I don鈥檛 know if I can recover.鈥�

Amanda Morales, associate professor at UNL and principal investigator on the RA脥CES project, said telling her group of undergraduate students about the funding cuts was 鈥渂y far, one of the hardest things I鈥檝e ever had to do.鈥�

鈥淲hen you see young people’s dreams just shattered in an instant because of something you said or this message you had to give, how do you bounce back from that?鈥� she asked. 鈥淲hat is happening to these projects and these programs is unprecedented, and it is really inhumane. There’s no other word for it.鈥�

RA脥CES, whose name is derived from a Spanish word meaning 鈥渞oots,鈥� was one of many teacher preparation programs that suddenly lost their funding when the Education Department canceled more than in grants. The programs, meant to increase the number of teachers in high-need and hard-to-staff schools, were accused by the department of discriminating against certain populations and embracing 鈥渄ivisive ideologies鈥� which aligned with diversity, equity and inclusion and 鈥渟ocial justice activism.鈥�

Eight attorneys general have since filed alleging the cancellation of the congressionally approved grants was unlawful. On Monday, a federal judge ordered the administration to in those eight states, which don鈥檛 include Kansas or Nebraska. Three teacher prep programs have also filed  

The scholarship, whose name stands for Re-envisioning Action and Innovation through Community Collaborations for Equity across Systems, had been promised $3.9 million through a grant, which sought to train more highly effective educators. It was housed at UNL and Kansas State University, which were required to match at least 25% of the federal funding.

RA脥CES was designed to be a comprehensive program that addressed the intractable teacher shortage in rural areas from recruiting novices to retaining veterans. It began with a high school-based program called Youth Participatory Action Research, providing students with the opportunity to explore careers in the classroom and investigate problems affecting their own education and communities. A number of students who ultimately received the full undergraduate scholarships, including Vianey, were recruited from this program. 

It also included funding for graduate-level scholarships, mentoring for teachers and ongoing professional development 鈥� meant to help educators stay in the profession long term. 

On Feb. 10, at 8:55 p.m., Socorro Herrera, professor and executive director of Kansas State鈥檚 Center for Intercultural and Multilingual Advocacy and the project鈥檚 lead principal investigator, received an email with an attached letter from the Education Department, telling her the grant would be terminated because it 鈥渋s inconsistent with, and no longer effectuates, Department priorities.鈥� 

She was shocked. 

鈥淢y thought is,鈥� she said, 鈥渋t鈥檚 not 鈥榙epartment priorities,鈥� but it is community priorities. It is state priorities. It is the priority of human beings who want to go back into those public schools in which they grew up to give back [and] to be the most highly qualified teacher they can be for all students 鈥� but also for students who are like them.鈥�

Morales said the letter and 鈥渂lanket termination鈥� of all SEED grants 鈥渓eft all of us just reeling with no clarity, no support, no one to call. Even our program officers are inaccessible. We were just left in the lurch 鈥� left to just flounder and try to pick up the pieces of this shattered project.鈥�

鈥榌The] teacher that I wish I had鈥�

Vianey was born in Mexico and came to the U.S. as a toddler with her parents and three siblings. The family spent their first decade or so in Washington state, where Vianey attended school as an English language learner. Even as a kid, Vianey was aware of the shortfalls of her school’s program and the negative impact it had on her and her English learner classmates.

鈥淚 just want to be that teacher that I wish I had when I was growing up to others,鈥� she said.

She noted it was particularly challenging to not have any teachers who looked like her or shared her life experiences. At the time, this made her feel like her dream of becoming an educator might not be attainable, a narrative she hopes to combat.

鈥淚t gives you a sense of belonging when you see somebody that looks like you in the classroom,鈥� she added.

When Vianey was in high school she moved to Nebraska with her mom, where she attended Lincoln High School and participated in the youth action program, which allowed her to do research on English language programs in her state. Eventually this led her to the RA脥CES scholarship at UNL, where she鈥檚 studying secondary education for Spanish, in the hopes of eventually returning to her own high school. 

As of December 2024, Nebraska schools had about , meaning they were staffed by someone other than a fully qualified teacher or were left totally vacant. About half of districts that responded to the state鈥檚 request for data reported complete vacancies. 

At roughly the same time, Kansas had almost 鈥� an 8%  increase from the previous spring, according to the teacher licensure director for the Kansas State Department of Education.

Nationally there were almost according to the Learning Policy Institute鈥檚 most recent analysis, likely a significant undercount because only 30 states and Washington, D.C. publish such data. 

has shown that rural schools face distinct difficulties filling their teaching positions, and that teacher turnover is especially common in high-poverty rural schools. And hiring foreign language and bilingual education teachers is especially hard.

鈥淭he money, explicitly and intentionally, was about increasing the number of teachers in rural schools,鈥� said Herrera. 

Vianey had acute ELL teacher shortages in her own district in mind when she decided to apply to RA脥CES. Getting accepted into the full scholarship program 鈥渕eant everything鈥� to her and to her parents, whose formal education ended after third grade. 

鈥淸My mom] felt like she succeeded and she was finally being able to achieve what she came here to do, and that is to give us a better life,鈥� said Vianey.

鈥榃e鈥檙e not rolling over here鈥�

Vianey is among the at least 70 high school students, 26 undergraduates and 40 master鈥檚 students across the two universities who have been impacted by the cuts, along with the almost 1,000 teachers in partnering districts who were receiving ongoing education and professional development.

The ripple effects are far-reaching, potentially impacting thousands of students whose chances of getting a highly qualified, fully certified teacher have now been diminished.

When the funding runs out this spring, Tiffaney Locke 鈥� a 42-year-old career changer who has spent the past 12 years working in community mental health 鈥� will be just two courses shy of her master鈥檚 degree. 

She said as a Black student in Kansas City schools, she was able to find success because of educators who believed in her. Her plan was to return to a similar school to be that teacher for kids who look like her. She quit her full-time job to complete what she thought would be a fully funded program and is now scared about what comes next but hopeful that her teaching career is still within reach.

While the population of the scholarship recipients is diverse, the only requirement for application was that students come from one of the six partner districts in Nebraska and Kansas, all identified as difficult to staff and, in most cases, rural. One of the districts they partnered with had almost 120 vacancies.

Of the 16 undergraduates at UNL who were supposed to receive full scholarships 鈥� including housing, meal plans and a laptop 鈥� one quarter identified as white and half identified as Hispanic or Latino, according to Morales. Three-quarters were first-generation college students and over half came from rural communities. They were all high-achieving high school students and 15 of the 16 had GPAs just over 3.5 in their first semester, well above the program’s 2.0 requirement.

鈥淭he fact that the government doesn鈥檛 think you鈥檙e worthy to be here is tragic,鈥� Morales said.

Morales and Herrera are now scrambling to find external funding, making any attempt they can to keep the program alive, but 鈥渢his may be the end of the road for many of [the students] because just loans and Pell grants wouldn鈥檛 be enough to see them through,鈥� Herrera said.

These across-the-board cuts have also had a chilling effect, she said, making those at the university level scared to speak out for fear of retribution from the federal government. Their concern is not baseless: the Trump administration recently in funding from Columbia University and halted payment on in grants to the University of Maine system.

鈥淓verybody鈥檚 in this silent mode, like 鈥楧on鈥檛 call attention to yourself, go under the radar, keep doing the work,鈥欌�� she added.

But the leaders of RA脥CES aren鈥檛 done.

 鈥淲e鈥檙e not rolling over here,鈥� said Morales. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not tucking our tail and just saying, 鈥極K, I guess this is just the way it is.鈥� We鈥檙e fighting on every front we possibly can and [are] continuing to fight up until the very last moment. I鈥檓 not giving up.鈥�

And Vianey isn鈥檛 quitting either. She wants to send a clear message to the people who took away her scholarship: 鈥淚t鈥檚 not going to stop us from achieving our dreams. We will find a way out 鈥� my purpose is to become a teacher 鈥� and I鈥檓 not going to stop until I鈥檓 able to.鈥�

Mary Koslap-Petraco, a pediatric nurse practitioner who exclusively treats underserved children, said when she heard the news Thursday morning she was immediately filled with 鈥渁bsolute dread.鈥�

鈥淚 have been following him for years,鈥� she told 蜜桃影视. 鈥淚鈥檝e read what he has written. I鈥檝e heard what he has said. I know he has made a fortune with his anti-vax stance.鈥�

She is primarily concerned that his rhetoric might 鈥渟care the daylights out of people so that they don鈥檛 want to vaccinate their children.鈥� She also fears he could move to defund a program under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that provides vaccines to kids who lack health insurance or otherwise wouldn鈥檛 be able to afford them. While the program is federally mandated by Congress, moves to drain its funding could essentially render it useless.

Koslap-Petraco鈥檚 practice in Massapequa Park, New York relies heavily on the program to vaccinate pediatric patients, she said. If it were to disappear, she asked, 鈥淗ow am I supposed to take care of poor children? Are they supposed to just die or get sick because their parents don’t have the funds to get the vaccines for them?鈥� 

And, if the government-run program were to stop paying for vaccines, she said she鈥檚 terrified private insurance companies might follow suit. 

Vaccines for Children is 鈥渢he backbone of pediatric vaccine infrastructure in the country,鈥� said Richard Hughes IV, former vice president of public policy at Moderna and a George Washington University law professor who teaches a course on vaccine law.

Kennedy will also have immense power over Medicaid, which covers low-income populations and provides billions of dollars to schools annually for physical, mental and behavioral health services for eligible students.

If Kennedy moves to weaken programs at HHS, which experts expect him to do, through across-the-board cuts in public health funding that trickle down to immunization programs or more targeted attacks, low-income and minority school-aged kids will be disproportionately impacted, Hughes said. 

鈥淚 just absolutely, fundamentally, confidently believe that we will see deaths,鈥� he added.

Anticipating chaos and instability

Following a contentious seven hours of grilling across two confirmation hearings, Democratic senators Kennedy鈥檚 confirmation on the floor late into the night Wednesday. The following morning, all 45 Democrats and both Independents voted in opposition and all but one Republican 鈥� childhood polio survivor Mitch McConnell of Kentucky 鈥� lined up behind President Donald Trump鈥檚 pick.

James Hodge, a public health law expert at Arizona State University鈥檚 Sandra Day O鈥機onnor College of Law, said that while it was good to see senators across the political spectrum asking tough questions and Kennedy offering up some concessions on vaccine-related policies and initiatives, he鈥檚 skeptical these will stick.

鈥淲hatever you’ve seen him do for the last 25 to 30 years is a much, much greater predictor than what you saw him do during two or three days of Senate confirmation proceedings,鈥� Hodge said. 鈥淓rgo, be concerned significantly about the future of vaccines, vaccine exemptions, [and] how we鈥檙e going to fund these things.鈥�

Hodge also said he doesn鈥檛 trust how Kennedy will respond to the consequences of a dropoff in childhood vaccines, pointing to the current in West Texas schools.

鈥淭he simple reality is he may plant misinformation or mis-messaging,鈥� he said.

During his confirmation hearings, Kennedy tried to distance himself from his past anti-vaccination sentiments stating, 鈥淣ews reports have claimed that I am anti-vaccine or anti-industry. I am neither. I am pro-safety 鈥� I believe that vaccines played a critical role in health care. All of my kids are vaccinated.鈥�

He was confirmed as Linda McMahon, Trump鈥檚 nominee to head the Department of Education, was sitting down for her first day of hearings. At one point that morning, McMahon signaled to possibly shifting enforcement to HHS of the 鈥� a federal law dating back to 1975 that mandates a free, appropriate public education for the with disabilities 鈥� if Trump were to succeed in shutting down the education department.

This would effectively put IDEA鈥檚 under Kennedy鈥檚 purview, further linking the education and public health care systems.

In a post on the social media site BlueSky, Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, she is 鈥渃oncerned that anyone is willing to move IDEA services for kids with disabilities into HHS, under a secretary who questions science.鈥�

Keri Rodrigues, president of the National Parents Union and a parent of a child with ADHD and autism, told 蜜桃影视 the idea was 鈥渁bsolutely absurd鈥� and would cause chaos and instability. 

Kennedy鈥檚 history of falsely asserting a link between childhood vaccines and autism 鈥� a disability included under IDEA coverage 鈥� is particularly concerning to experts in this light.

鈥淵ou obviously have a contingent of kids who are beneficiaries of IDEA that are navigating autism spectrum disorder,鈥� said Hughes, 鈥淐ould [we] potentially see some sort of policy activity and rhetoric around that? Potentially.鈥�

Vaccines 鈥� and therefore HHS 鈥� are inextricably linked to schools. Currently, all 50 states have vaccine requirements for children entering child care and schools. But Kennedy, who now has control of an agency with a $1.7 trillion budget and 90,000 employees spread across 13 agencies, could pull multiple levers to roll back requirements, enforcements and funding, according to 蜜桃影视鈥檚 previous reporting. And Trump has signaled an interest in that mandate vaccines.

鈥淭here’s a certain percentage of the population that is focused on removing school entry requirements,鈥� said Northe Saunders, executive director of the pro-vaccine SAFE Communities Coalition. 鈥淭hey are loud, and they are organized and they are well funded by groups just like RFK Jr.鈥檚 .鈥�

Kennedy will also have the ability to influence the makeup of the committees that approve vaccines and add them to the federal vaccine schedule, which state legislators rely on to determine their school policies. Hodge said one of these committees is already being 鈥渞e-organized and re-thought as we speak.鈥�

鈥淲ith him now in place, just expect that committee to start really changing its members, its tone, the demeanor, the forcefulness of which it’s suggesting vaccines,鈥� he added.

Hughes, the law professor, said he is preparing for mass staffing changes throughout the agency, mirroring what鈥檚 already happened across in Trump鈥檚 first weeks in office. He predicts this will include Kennedy possibly asking for the resignations 鈥渙f all scientific leaders with HHS.鈥� 

Kennedy appeared to confirm that he was eyeing staffing cuts Thursday night during on Fox News鈥檚 鈥淭he Ingraham Angle.鈥�

鈥淚 have a list in my head 鈥� if you鈥檝e been involved in good science, you have got nothing to worry about,鈥� Kennedy said.