Federal Court Blocks Administration’s Attempt to Freeze School Mental Health Funding

BY EMMANUEL OGBONNA

A federal appeals court has refused the Trump administration’s effort to pause a lower-court order requiring the release of millions of dollars in school mental-health grants, marking the latest development in an ongoing legal battle over funding intended to ease the nationwide shortage of school-based mental health professionals.

The grants were created after the 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, when Congress approved a major investment to help schools hire counselors, psychologists and social workers, particularly in rural districts and underserved communities where mental health staffing has long lagged behind student needs. The programs were launched during President Joe Biden’s administration, with an emphasis on supporting districts that highlighted plans to recruit counselors from a wide range of backgrounds or from the communities they serve.

The Trump administration, however, objected to criteria within the programs that referenced race or diversity. Officials argued that those portions of the initiatives were harmful to students, and they notified grant recipients that future funding would be cut off after December 2025. A coalition of 16 states — all led by Democratic governors — sued, accusing federal officials of unlawfully dismantling a program Congress intended to continue.

In October, U.S. District Judge Kymberly K. Evanson ruled that the administration’s attempt to cancel the mental-health grants was “arbitrary and capricious,” finding that federal officials failed to justify reversing the program or demonstrate that continuing the grants would cause harm.

The Department of Education and Secretary of Education Linda McMahon sought an emergency stay, asking the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to halt Evanson’s order while the administration pursued an appeal. On Thursday, a three-judge panel rejected that request. In its decision, the panel wrote that the administration had not shown it was likely to win the case or that it would face serious, irreversible harms if the order remained in effect.

The ruling means dozens of school districts can once again access funds that had been suddenly placed in jeopardy. In California, for example, the decision restores about $3.8 million for Madera County schools and roughly $8 million for schools in Marin County — money local leaders say is urgently needed to retain counselors and keep mental-health programs running without interruption.

After the October decision, the administration said in a public statement that the grants had been used “to promote divisive ideologies based on race and sex,” repeating its view that the diversity-related components of the program were inappropriate. State officials and education advocates countered that the administration was attempting to dismantle a program Congress intended to strengthen, not terminate, at a time when student mental-health needs continue to rise nationwide.

For now, the preliminary ruling remains in place while the broader lawsuit continues. The case is expected to move forward in the coming months, with significant implications for school districts depending on federal support to fill critical mental-health staffing shortages.