The Sconi

Attorney General Josh Kaul has successfully obtained a temporary restraining order from the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, halting the Trump Administration's termination of K-12 teacher preparation pipeline grants. This decision comes as part of a lawsuit filed by Kaul and seven other attorneys general seeking to prevent the cessation of these funds.

AG Kaul stated, "Kids in Wisconsin shouldn’t be denied a quality education because of a lack of teachers." He expressed optimism about this early ruling aimed at maintaining grants designed to enhance the teacher workforce and improve educational quality.

In 2024, there were over 400,000 teaching positions vacant or filled by uncertified teachers across the United States. This shortage affects students through larger class sizes and less qualified instruction. To combat this issue, Congress established funding through programs like Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP) and Supporting Effective Educator Development. These initiatives aim to train teachers and develop new pipelines for educators.

On February 7, 2025, the Department of Education terminated grants awarded to K-12 teacher preparation programs nationwide. This action affected hundreds of millions in funding, including more than $3 million allocated to Wisconsin alone. The University of Wisconsin-Madison had received a five-year TQP grant worth approximately $3.3 million in 2023 for training special education teachers in Milwaukee Public Schools.

Milwaukee Public Schools faces a significant shortage with around 100 vacant special education positions. The program intended to address this by training selected individuals through mentorships and graduate coursework in special education. At the time of termination, ten individuals were already participating as teacher residents with plans for additional cohorts underway.

The court's temporary order prevents immediate disruptions while states pursue further legal action to secure these essential educational resources.