A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to resume some of the $1 billion in school mental health grants that had been halted earlier this year.
Kymberly Evanson, a U.S. District Court judge in Seattle, issued the preliminary ruling in a case brought by 16 states. The grants were originally funded by Congress after the 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, to help hire counselors, psychologists and social workers, according to an Oct. 27 news release from the Washington Office of the Attorney General.
The Education Department under then-President Joe Biden awarded the grants, prioritizing applicants who aimed to hire staff from diverse backgrounds or from the communities they serve, according to an Oct. 27 report from The Associated Press. When President Donald Trump took office, his administration opposed diversity-related criteria and moved to end the funding in December 2025, citing a conflict with its interpretation of “merit, fairness and excellence in education.”
Ms. Evanson ruled that the Education Department’s actions were “arbitrary and capricious” and said the states showed evidence of real harm, according to the release. The decision restores $3.8 million in funding to Madera County, Calif., and $8 million to Marin County, Calif. In Maine, nine rural school districts said they would lose 14 school mental health workers if the grants were halted, according to the AP report.
