As Superintendent of Denver Public Schools and President of the Board of Education, we join the Council of the Great City Schools in strongly urging the U.S. Department of Education and the White House Office of Management and Budget to immediately release the FY 2025 federal education funds already approved by Congress and signed into law.
Districts like Denver—and others across the nation—have planned, budgeted, and in many cases, already hired staff in reliance on these funds. Withholding these critical dollars just days before the new school year begins will result in widespread disruption: classrooms without teachers, students without essential support services, and schools facing impossible budget shortfalls.
This action is not just a logistical crisis—it is a moral and constitutional breach. The decision to delay the distribution of congressionally-appropriated education funds is a dangerous overreach of executive authority and a direct affront to public education, especially for communities that rely most heavily on these supports.
For our Latino, Black, and multilingual learners—and all students served in historically underfunded districts—this delay threatens core programming such as bilingual education, mental health support, special education services, and after-school enrichment. It weakens our national commitment to equity and public trust in government. The Department of Education’s role is to advance opportunity—not stall it.
Denver Public Schools stands with our colleagues across the country and demands the immediate release of these funds. We will not sit idly by as our communities are left vulnerable and our children are forced to bear the cost of political gamesmanship. Our students deserve better—and we will continue to fight for them.
Dr. Alex Marrero
Superintendent, Denver Public Schools
President, Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents (ALAS)
Dr. Carrie Olson
President, Denver Public Schools Board of Education on behalf of the entire Board