by Dr. David J Holbrook
ESSA Title III funding has been a Good News – Bad News kind of topic, so this article will follow that format.
Old Administration
At the end of the previous administration, it was mostly good news. We had a Secretary of Education who was a former English learner (EL); we saw Title III funding grow by more than $50 million (up to $890 million) during that administration. We also had a director of the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) who was also a former EL and a valuable resource for multilingual learners (MLs) and their educators.
New Administration
With the current administration in power, it has been mostly bad news for Title III. There were immediate threats to all federal education funding and definite targeted threats to Title III and other funding for immigrants and MLs. The President appointed a Secretary of Education whose goal is to dismantle, and if possible, eliminate the U.S. Department of Education (USED) completely. All staff except one person in OELA were fired, and no one was appointed to the director of OELA position. In May this year, OELA itself was eliminated, and the responsibilities assigned to OELA, including Title III, have been distributed to other offices at USED and even other agencies at the federal level. Title III is now housed at USED in the Special Populations Unit of the Office of State Support and Accountability.
The good news with Title III funding is that it is still flowing. Every year, the U.S. Congress has passed funding legislation that includes funding for Title III. The bad news is that, based on an analysis of inflation and increases in the numbers of ELs/MLs, Title III should be funded at about $2 billion. The current administration has not provided any additional increases in Title III, and it still remains at $890 million.
Title III Funding Last Year
The bad news for last year (July 2025) was that the current administration didn’t distribute Title III funding to states on the normal timeline (by July 1). The good news was that it was eventually distributed, even if it was a month later than normal. The bad news was that a disruption like this sent waves of uncertainty to districts across the country, who are now taking a more conservative approach to budgeting for Title III expenditures, which includes a sort of mantra of “don’t spend the money until you have it in your hand.”
Title III Funding This Year and Next
The good news was that in July 2026, Title III funding was distributed to states on the normal timeline, and there should be no disruptions to Title III funding for the 2026-2027 school year. The bad news is that the current administration is still advocating for eliminating Title III funding. And, in early June, the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education approved a bill that would eliminate Title III funding for the 2027-2028 school year. However, this is not new and has been unsuccessfully tried multiple times. The good news is that the U.S. Senate is almost always not in agreement with making cuts to education funding, and both the House and Senate must agree on a funding bill before it can be passed. And more good news, the Senate has always been successful in maintaining education funding and frequently includes increases. What we’ll be watching next is the budget that comes out of the U.S. Senate and eventually what gets passed and sent to the President for his signature.
For now, breathe easy for the 2026-2027 school year Title III funding. It has been distributed to states. If your district is eligible for Title III funds, once the state approves your Title III grant application, you’ll have access to that money. Stay tuned and stay positive for more good news than bad news!
