As the new school year looms on the horizon, educators and families across the United States are facing a wave of uncertainty and disruption unlike any in recent memory. In a span of just a few weeks, two major moves by the Trump administration’s Department of Education have thrown state and local planning into chaos: a sudden freeze of billions in critical federal education funds, and a controversial push by Oklahoma’s top education official to overhaul statewide testing—despite both federal and state laws standing in the way.
On June 30, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education stunned state leaders by abruptly freezing over $6.8 billion in federal education funds for fiscal year 2025. According to reporting by Nexstar Media and commentary from education policy experts, this move affected a broad array of programs, including teacher training, English learner support, and after-school services. The freeze came just as superintendents and principals were finalizing staffing and resources for the coming year, forcing them to scramble to revise budgets and delay critical decisions.
“Instead of preparing for the new school year, states and districts were forced to scramble to minimize the damage,” wrote David DeMatthews, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin, in an opinion piece published by Nexstar Media. He described speaking with superintendents, chief academic officers, and chief financial officers who were blindsided by the funding freeze and suddenly faced with unanticipated deficits. These deficits, he noted, undermined strategic investments in high-quality instruction and mental health services, just as students prepared to return to classrooms.
The impact was felt nationwide. In Texas, nearly 1,200 districts faced a freeze of $660 million—representing about 16 percent of the state’s total K-12 funding. In Tennessee, $106 million in federal support was frozen, or 13.4 percent of the state’s K-12 funds. Knox County Schools in Tennessee eliminated 28 central office positions, including staff who supported instruction for English learners. Florida saw $400 million frozen, with Pinellas County School District alone standing to lose $9 million. The district’s superintendent warned that the cuts would directly affect student achievement, while the school board chair described the freeze as “the straw that broke the camel’s back.” Kansas was also hit hard, with $50 million in funds frozen. Kansas City, Kan. Public Schools warned families that $4.9 million in lost funding would affect programs for some of the district’s most vulnerable students, including those from low-income families, English language learners, and students with disabilities.
The Trump administration initially claimed the freeze was part of a “programmatic review” to ensure spending aligned with White House priorities. However, as reported by Nexstar Media, the review process was conducted without transparency, and the funds were only released after intense backlash. Lawsuits from 24 states and pressure from Republican senators forced the administration to reverse course on July 25, 2025, and announce the release of the remaining funds. Yet, as DeMatthews pointed out, “the damage had already been done.”
Districts had built their budgets assuming these funds would arrive by July 1, as they do each year. Instead, the uncertainty forced many to make staffing and programming decisions without knowing whether critical federal support would materialize. Even after the funds were released, the disruption left lasting scars. “Even with the funds now being released, the uncertainty and disruption caused by the freeze will have lasting impacts,” DeMatthews wrote, warning that such “reckless disruption is unacceptable and will carry political consequences.”
As districts across the country scrambled to recover from the funding freeze, another controversy erupted in Oklahoma. On August 11, 2025, State Superintendent Ryan Walters announced a plan to eliminate statewide end-of-year standardized tests for the 2025-2026 school year, allowing districts to use their own “benchmark assessments” instead. Walters claimed the move would free Oklahoma from “federal overreach” in dictating testing models, and asserted in an interview on “Real America’s Voice” that the Trump administration was “all for it.”
However, as reported by KFOR and KGOU, a senior U.S. Department of Education official quickly clarified that the department had not approved Oklahoma’s plan. The official stressed that Walters’ office would first need to apply for a federal waiver, a process requiring a public comment period, consultation with school districts, and clear evidence that feedback was incorporated into the plan. “This is in no way approved by the department, and I think that’s really important to clarify for Oklahoma parents and families,” the official told KGOU.
Despite the lack of federal approval, the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) sent school districts a letter stating they had until December 31, 2025, to choose a vendor for the new benchmark assessments. This move caught other state agencies off guard. The state’s Office of Educational Quality and Accountability, which actually oversees testing, told News 4 it was not consulted on Walters’ announcement. In response, Walters’ office issued a press release stating that OSDE had “delivered multiple messages, hosted a series of webinars, and made the information publicly available” beginning the previous week.
But even if Walters were to secure the necessary federal waiver, Oklahoma law still stands in the way of his plan. Senate Education Chair Adam Pugh told FOX 23 News that the legislature was blindsided by the announcement, and reminded districts that state law requires end-of-year tests. “Even if the feds were to grant that waiver today as an example, the law does not allow school districts to go through the process of eliminating state testing,” Pugh said. “The law does not allow for that. It’s certainly not going to happen in the school year 25-26.”
The twin crises—one national, one state-level—have left educators, parents, and policymakers grappling with questions about the future of public education governance in America. Critics of the Trump administration’s funding freeze have called it a “reckless policy choice that disrespected educators, destabilized schools and put children at risk,” as DeMatthews wrote for Nexstar Media. Meanwhile, Oklahoma’s attempt to circumvent both federal and state law on testing has raised alarms about the proper process and the importance of public input in education policy.
Some observers see these events as part of a broader pattern of executive overreach, with both left- and right-leaning critics warning against the normalization of top-down decision-making that bypasses established checks and balances. “Public education cannot function on the Trump administration’s political whims and such unwarranted actions cannot go unchecked without the risk of normalizing executive overreach at the expense of students,” DeMatthews argued. Others, however, have voiced frustration with federal mandates, echoing Walters’ concerns about state autonomy in education.
As the dust settles, one thing is clear: the stakes for America’s students, teachers, and families are higher than ever. With budgets and testing regimes in flux, the coming school year will test not only the resilience of local districts, but also the strength of the nation’s commitment to public education as a shared, stable good.