AUDIO TRANSCRIPT: CNY teachers fight for their students with the abolishment of the U.S. Department of Education and DEI programs
Nicholas Waley: The way children are taught in the United States is being challenged like never before. Two weeks ago, President Trump signed an executive order to abolish the Department of Education as we know it. Before that, his executive orders to remove diversity, equity and inclusion programs has already directly affected kids in our schools. With initiatives like Title I funding in the balance and resources already stretched paper thin, the value of educators like art teacher Mindy Pavone are higher than ever before to inspire the next generation of students, especially those who need those resources the most.
Mindy Pavone: I want my students to feel comfortable. I want my students to feel like school is a safe space for them because for a lot of students, that’s the only safe space that they have. And if you take that away from teachers, you’re going to see students suffer.
Waley: Whenever there have been any sort of budget cuts in schools, the art programs are normally the first ones to go. And for musical teachers like Jenna Ratten here at Clinton High School, these art programs provide a space for students who may not have another place to go.
Jenna Wratten: It’s a place for every person to feel accepted. No theater teacher could ask for anything more than that. For people to come here and go, “hey, I’m safe here. I feel welcomed. I feel comforted. I feel recognized. People can see me and I can be myself.” It’s the best thing in the world. The best.
Waley: The Trump administration plans to cut more than a billion dollars of government grants to the Department of Education, which means that incredible theaters like this one could go dark. Reporting from Clinton, New York, Nicholas Waley, NCC News.
CLINTON, N.Y. (NCC News) – On March 20, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to abolish the Department of Education in the United States. The White House says that the “closure of the Department of Education would drastically improve program implementation in higher education.”
Before that, the Trump administration also disbanded diversity, equity and inclusion programs, which had already affected schools in the United States.
In Central New York, the strong state education department has kept most art programs afloat for now. Superintendent Christopher Clancy commended the state departments’ “efforts to keep our student’s education first.”
Whenever there have been budget cuts in the past, the art programs are normally the first on the chopping block for school districts. Now the Trump administration, plans to cut “$600 million in grants to institutions and nonprofits that were using taxpayer funds to train teachers and education agencies on divisive ideologies.” That includes art programs like theater and choir, which provide a safe space for many students, will be cut by the president’s executive orders.
Teachers like Clinton High School’s Mindy Pavone are concerned for their students. She said she “doesn’t know what to tell her students when they ask (her) what’s going to happen.” Educators like Pavone are going the extra mile for students, even when the future may be uncertain.