Trump administration must restore mental health funding for schools: Judge rules decision ‘arbitrary and capricious’
A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to release millions of dollars in school mental health grants that were halted after officials objected to diversity-related criteria used in their distribution, the Associated Press (AP) reported.The funding, created in the wake of the 2022 Uvalde school shooting, was designed to help schools recruit and retain counsellors, psychologists, and social workers, particularly in rural and underserved areas. The U.S. Department of Education under President Donald Trump had announced earlier this year that the grants would end by December 2025, arguing that the selection process conflicted with its commitment to “merit, fairness, and excellence in education.”
Court calls cuts ‘arbitrary and capricious’
In a preliminary ruling, Judge Kymberly K. Evanson of the U.S. District Court in Seattle described the administration’s decision as “arbitrary and capricious,” AP reports. The ruling applies to several grantees in sixteen Democratic-led states that sued the Department of Education, claiming that the cuts would cause immediate harm to schools already struggling to provide student mental health support.The order temporarily reinstates funding while the case continues. In California, the decision restores roughly $3.8 million to Madera County and $8 million to Marin County.Evanson said that Congress had established and repeatedly reauthorised the programme to address the national shortage of school-based mental health professionals. She observed that the Department had failed to present any data or reasoning showing why the grants no longer served the “best interest” of federal policy.
States argue real impact on students
The states that brought the case highlighted the tangible effects of the funding. In Maine, for instance, the grants enabled nine rural school districts to hire ten new mental health professionals and retain four others — positions that would otherwise disappear without federal support.Judge Evanson wrote that such losses demonstrated “real harm,” especially in regions where students’ access to mental health care was already limited.
Shift in federal priorities
The grants were initially awarded under President Joe Biden’s administration, which encouraged applicants to demonstrate plans for increasing the number of counsellors from diverse backgrounds or from communities directly served by their schools. When the Trump administration took office, it objected to those provisions, saying they imposed unnecessary considerations of race and diversity.The Education Department has yet to comment publicly on the ruling.
A broader question of educational equity
The dispute underscores the ongoing national debate over whether diversity considerations belong in federal education funding. While critics of such policies frame them as ideological, supporters argue that representation among mental health professionals helps schools meet the needs of all students.For now, Judge Evanson’s order ensures that critical funding will continue to reach schools that say they cannot maintain essential mental health services without it.
