Local early childhood education center reels from federal funding uncertainty

The Trump administration’s freeze on federal grants and loans has left early childhood education programs like Higher Horizons in Bailey’s Crossroads facing financial uncertainty, even after a court ruled the funding must resume.

On Friday (Feb. 7), Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) met with staff and educators at the nonprofit Head Start provider to discuss the lingering effects of the freeze, which was triggered by a White House directive pausing federal aid while the administration reviewed how the funds align with its policy goals.

While a judge blocked the directive on Jan. 29, halting the freeze while a lawsuit filed by affected nonprofits works its way through the court system, many programs — including Higher Horizons — are still waiting on delayed payments, making it difficult to cover operational costs.

A federal judge in Rhode Island ruled today (Monday) that the Trump administration has been violating the previous court order by continuing to “improperly freeze federal funds,” ordering the government to immediately end the freeze until it can hear a lawsuit filed by several states.

The judge said that the sweeping freeze is “likely unconstitutional and has caused and continues to cause irreparable harm to a vast portion of this country.”

Officials with Higher Horizons and Head Start shared some of the issues they’ve experienced so far at a roundtable organized during Kaine’s visit on Friday.

“It’s still a fluid situation in terms of programs being able to get their funds,” Kathleen Havey, senior director of policy for National Head Start Association, said. “As of last night, we were at around 50 programs from across the country that were still not able to get them.”

Those affected programs serve about 20,000 children in 22 states, according to Havey.

Higher Horizons, which receives funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Head Start and the Fairfax County Office for Children, serves about 300 low-income children and families in Fairfax County, offering early education, health screenings and social services.

Though county funding remains steady, Higher Horizons Executive Director Leticia Howze said the federal funding freeze sent program leaders into a panic. The temporary shutdown of the federal grant system delayed access to already-awarded money, leaving grantees scrambling to cover payroll, operational costs and essential services.

“The Payment Management System was frozen, and we could not draw down,” Howze said. “And as Kathleen [Havey] alluded to, we don’t get a lump sum of our grant in a budget in the beginning of the year. We draw down.”

The disruption forced some Head Start programs across the country to consider temporary closures or furloughing staff. While Higher Horizons had enough reserves to avoid immediate layoffs, Howze said the uncertainty makes it impossible to make long-term plans, including for renewing leases or hiring additional teachers.

“We did think about, ‘What spending can we freeze in our organization immediately that will not cripple us into laying off people or closing our doors to our children and families?’” she said.

The freeze is just one of several recent White House actions that have left local nonprofits and public institutions uncertain about the support they can expect from the federal government going forward.

Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) received $168 million in federal funding for fiscal year 2025 to support programs like special education, Title I schools, multilingual learners and school meals. More than a third of that — $58.2 million — was earmarked for Food and Nutrition Services.

Future funding could potentially be put at risk by the grant freeze as well as an executive order signed on Feb. 5 by President Donald Trump that authorized the U.S. Department of Education to find school districts allowing transgender athletes to compete in violation of Title IX, which bars discrimination on the basis of sex.

While the NCAA immediately revised its policies for college sports, many of the state-level bodies governing high school sports have indicated that they will stick with their existing rules or take a “wait-and-see approach,” the Associated Press reported.

FCPS didn’t explicitly say it will ignore the executive order but noted its existing policies allowing students to use facilities and programs that match their gender identity “align with state and federal anti-discrimination laws, binding court precedent, and Virginia High School League guidance.”

“FCPS remains committed to fostering a safe, supportive, welcoming, and inclusive school environment for all students and staff, including our transgender and gender-expansive students and staff,” a spokesperson told FFXnow. “We know that students can only learn effectively and participate fully when they feel safe and supported and accepted for who they are.”

Kaine, who serves on the Senate Budget Committee, said he believes the White House directing federal agencies to pause or withhold funding allocated by Congress violates the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974, which limits the executive branch’s ability to unilaterally withhold or delay congressionally approved funds without explicit authorization from the legislature.

The Virginia senator noted that Republicans hold majorities in both chambers of Congress, and the lawful way to make budget cuts would be through legislation rather than executive action.

“The President is not confident that the Republican majorities will go along with him,” Kaine told FFXnow. “He’s doing things beyond what he thinks even Republican congressional leaders will tolerate. That’s why he’s trying to do them by unilateral executive action.”

Budget talks are likely to begin this week in Congress, and Kaine urged educators and parents to continue pressing lawmakers to prioritize Head Start and similar programs.

“We’re going to hear from our constituents, and I hope that makes my colleagues, when they’re back in D.C. next week and every week, fight for programs like this,” he said.