Office of the
Illinois Attorney General
Kwame Raoul

Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul today joined a coalition of eight attorneys general in opposition to the Trump administration’s unlawful termination of grant funding for K-12 teacher preparation programs. Beginning in mid-February, Illinois institutions received letters from the Department of Education purporting to terminate grants providing at least $13.4 million in critical funding to address the state’s ongoing teacher shortage through teacher preparation programs.

“Teacher preparation grants are a key tool to address the serious teacher shortage crisis that continues to affect school districts across Illinois,” Raoul said. “The Trump administration’s shortsighted and unlawful termination of these grants would lead to larger class sizes, less one-on-one time with students and limit the ability for teachers to prepare students for their futures.”

Congress established and allocated funding pursuant to the Teacher Quality Partnership and Supporting Effective Educator Development grant programs to train teachers, create a new teacher pipeline and improve teacher quality. The U.S. Department of Education subsequently awarded and obligated funds to states’ public universities, school districts and associated nonprofits grants under these programs to do exactly what Congress mandated – create a pipeline for teachers serving rural and urban communities to teach harder-to-fill positions like math and science. The programs have been shown to increase teacher retention rates and ensure that educators remain in the profession beyond the crucial first five years.

In their lawsuit, Raoul and the attorneys general argue that the terminations, impacting institutions across the nation without warning and with immediate effect, violate the Administrative Procedure Act. Raoul and the attorneys general are seeking a temporary restraining order to prevent disruptions to these programs, which would immediately reduce the number of teachers and teacher trainees serving in schools.

In Illinois, the terminations would be felt immediately in schools that rely on these programs to bring teachers into their classrooms. The terminations would also cause layoffs or reductions in hours for university staff and would result in reduced or eliminated support and funding for new aspiring teachers.

Impacted programs in Illinois include: 

• Teacher Education Alliance Model (“TEAM”), a partnership between Cook County School District 104, Maywood–Melrose Park–Broadview School District 89 and Chicago State University that has a goal to prepare 300 apprentice teachers for employment in high-needs schools in communities like Bedford Park, Bridgeview, Broadview, Maywood, Melrose Park and Summit.
  
  
• Pre-Service Teaching Equity Project (“P-STEP”), a program created by the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) to better recruit, prepare, develop and retain a strong teacher workforce by supporting 300 student teachers every year, placing them at hard-to-staff CPS schools and improving their experience so they are more likely to accept full-time employment. 

In 2024, more than 400,000 teaching positions in the U.S. – representing about one in eight of all teaching positions nationwide – were vacant or filled by uncertified teachers. Students suffer when schools are unable to find qualified teachers. Teacher shortages can result in larger class sizes, cancelled courses or classes staffed with teachers less able to teach a subject.

Joining Raoul in filing the lawsuit are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Wisconsin.