Public school district joins legal challenge to protect education access for all  

Move comes after Trump doubles-down in Joint Address to Congress on efforts to cut school funding 

Eugene. OR – A public school district in Oregon is joining a legal effort to stop a Trump-Vance administration policy that threatens to withhold federal funding from any school or education institution that declines to undermine civil rights laws. 

Eugene School District 4J today became the newest member of a coalition of plaintiffs, including the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the American Sociological Association, and the AFT-Maryland, which filed a lawsuit last week that challenges a new Department of Education policy that threatens to cancel federal funding for education institutions that teach accurate history about slavery and race relations, provide critical programming that supports student achievement, and engage in diversity, equity or inclusion efforts. Eugene School District 4J is the first public school district to sign on to the suit. The coalition is represented in the case by Democracy Forward. 

The amended complaint also alleges that the Department of Education’s recent publication of “FAQs” in response to questions raised by the policy only adds to the confusion it creates for schools and educators.  

“Our public schools have a legal and moral responsibility to educate and provide opportunities to all students and to make every effort to eliminate barriers so that all of our students can thrive,” said Eugene School District 4J Board Chair Jenny Jonak. “Our equity programs are part of our Board and district goals to make sure our students have fair access to achievement and that our schools are effective in reaching all students, including our most vulnerable. The recent executive orders and agency directives not only hamper these efforts, but they are so vague and ambiguous that it makes it challenging from an operational standpoint to know what will risk the loss of federal funding.”

“Students throughout the country will suffer if the Trump-Vance administration is able to so blatantly and unlawfully weaponize education funding to prevent real history from being taught in our schools,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “Eugene School District 4J’s participation in this case underscores how severe the impacts of weaponizing public school funding for political purposes will be for schools across the nation. Democracy Forward will continue to pursue every legal opportunity to stop harmful attacks on freedom of expression and on values like inclusion, diversity, and belonging that make us all and our nation stronger.”

For more information about the case, please click here. 

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Democracy Forward is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org.