As the Trump administration prepares to take office, CUNY must put action behind its lofty ideals of accessibility and student empowerment.
CUNY’s large low-income and immigrant population will face multifaceted harm from President-elect Donald Trump’s policies, which aim to cut resources from education. CUNY must outline clear plans to address the educational crisis Trump campaigned on creating.
CUNY’s leadership team must work with existing support services to communicate resources and make students aware of steps being taken to respond to the policy changes. CUNY must highlight, strengthen and expand support services for students particularly harmed by the Trump administration. For example, the Initiative on Immigration and Education and programs like the Comprehensive Access to Resources for Essential Services program are more essential than ever.
In 2022, CUNY reported that more than a third of CUNY undergraduates were born outside the U.S. mainland, hailing from various countries including the Dominican Republic, China, Bangladesh, Jamaica, Guyana, Ecuador, Haiti and Mexico.
Trump has vowed to destroy the U.S. Department of Education, which is responsible for distributing federal financial aid for education, collecting and disseminating data and research related to schools and prohibiting discrimination in schools.
Through Federal Student Aid, the U.S. Department of Education awards more than $120 billion a year in grants, work-study funds and low-interest loans to approximately 13 million students.
“One thing I’ll be doing very early in the administration is closing up the Department of Education in Washington, D.C., and sending all education and education work it needs back to the states,” Trump said in a 2023 campaign video.
A report from the New York City Comptroller’s office, Protecting New York City, also found that federal budget cuts will hurt the city.
The report found that New York City’s public schools, CUNY and early childhood education programs receive $3.5 billion annually in federal funds. The Trump administration could reduce or eliminate that funding, redirect vouchers or Education Savings Accounts or subject the city to unacceptable conditions.
It is imperative that CUNY publicly acknowledge these realities and work with CUNY’s community leaders to address these issues.
