Last week, school districts elsewhere in the country reported receiving notices in that the U.S. Department of Education had shut off funding for Charting My Path—an American Institutes for Research program funded by the U.S. Department of Education that helps special needs students transition from school to adulthood—as ordered by the new presidential administration.

And Newton is one of them. But Superintendent Anna Nolin said the district hadn’t started budgeting for it yet, and since the district already has a special education transition program, students won’t be left out in the proverbial cold.

“AIR notified us on Tuesday that they will not be able to further fund the program after Feb. 10,” Nolin said.  “So this supplemental program services will need to be ended as we did not budget for those services within the operating budget.”

But, Nolin continued, most districts only use the federal funding for the first year of the program, to test it out, and then budget for it themselves if they want to continue with it.

“This was our first year using this in Newton, so we had not yet determined the impact or future of the program, although we were impressed by our staff and their commitment and creativity in these new roles,” she said.

After Donald Trump won the 2024 election and started talking about deep education funding cuts, local and state officials started preparing.

“Earlier this year, given the grant funded nature of the roles, we worked with the NTA to ensure that, should grants be under attack in the manner we are seeing, they could return to positions they left last year in taking the risk on this new program (this is also customary when a new grant program is enacted),” Nolin explained. “So, long story short, the staff can bump back into positions for which they are qualified, and there is no impact to the NPS budget.”

Newton’s Special Education services include student-to-adulthood transition help already, so the cuts to Charting My Path mean the district will just stick with its original transition planning program.

“We have had none of our direct allocations to the NPS budget or any programs frozen at this time,” Nolin assured.

But losing the Charting My Path program—which Nolin said “served students in a manner over and above” state and federal law requirements—still stings.

“The impact is that we always strive to provide the maximum supports and programs for all of our students and we believe deeply in the self-determination work of the AIR grant,” Nolin said. “Transition services as part of the IEP process remain intact.”

State and local education officials have been working to reassure their staff and communities while funding cuts and executive orders from the White House continue to sew uncertainty.

Late last week, acting Massachusetts Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Russell Johnston sent an email to superintendents, which was shared with the community, reassuring parents and school staff that the actions in Washington won’t affect how the state views education.

“The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Educational Vision remains unchanged,” Johnston wrote. “In its simplest form, it is to create a public education system where every student is seen, heard, and valued and where all students have the opportunity to thrive.”

The state’s guidance on nondiscrimination on the basis of gender identity in public schools will remain the same, too, he added.

“It is essential that schools should continue their support for marginalized students — including LGBTQ students — to reinforce that they belong in their school communities,” Johnston continued. “Research consistently demonstrates that when schools take proactive steps to foster inclusivity—through affirming practices, supportive educators and strong policies—students experience improved mental health, academic success, and overall well-being.”