WASHINGTON —
Sixteen states are fighting to restore funding for school mental health resources after the Trump administration discontinued roughly $1 billion in previously awarded grants, partly due to criteria encouraging diversity.
A federal court heard arguments on the states' request for a preliminary injunction on Friday, as some grant recipients say their progress is in jeopardy.
Congress boosted mental health funding under the Biden administration as part of a bipartisan response to the deadly school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, in 2022.
AppleTree Early Learning, a public charter school system in Washington, D.C., used the funding to expand its team of social workers and mental health consultants. Their program, which was initially jump-started with private dollars, provides dir