Schools no longer have federal COVID relief money, and over the past few months federal funding has remained up in the air. Boone County Education Association president Kelly Read said that when schools have planned expanding technology or replacing a fleet of buses, uncertainty about where to allocate funds causes confusion and stalls progress.
"When you make a promise, you need to fulfill that promise," he said, "when you make a promise to communities, and really, when you make a promise to students, who are the most vulnerable."
According to the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, 14 Kentucky school districts have a total of $38 million in unspent or unreimbursed federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds. In June, the Trump administration froze $87 million in Department of Education grants for Kentucky schools, but reversed course and released the funds a few weeks later.
Even if cuts don't directly impact the classroom, said Jessica Hiler, vice president of the Kentucky Education Association, communities feel the economic loss, noting public schools are among the largest employers in many Kentucky counties.
"So the districts are going to have to go back to their budgets, budget everything they've already decided to spend for the year, and make some decisions and decide what their priorities are," she said.
The state continues to struggle with a teacher shortage and retention challenges. Last school year, average district pay for Kentucky teachers, adjusted for inflation, was nearly $14,000 less than in 2008, a nearly 20% decline.