As President Donald Trump dismantles the U.S. Department of Education, questions are arising about what that means for Colorado school districts, which collectively received nearly $1.2 billion in federal funding in the 2023-24 federal fiscal year.

While answers to those questions remain unclear at this juncture, we can tell you what’s potentially at risk. Data from Colorado’s Legislative Council Staff spell out the amount of federal education money that each Colorado school district received for critical work. We have created a table that lists federal education funding by school districts, and we’ve created another that groups school districts and BOCES by congressional districts. Please note that if a school district or BOCE crosses congressional district lines, it is counted in both congressional districts.

The federal funding addresses critical and specific needs, such as Title I funding, which supports children from low-income families and schools that have high numbers of low-income children. The purpose of Title I funding, according to the U.S. Department of Education, “is to provide all children significant opportunity to receive a fair, equitable, and high-quality education, and to close educational achievement gaps by allocating federal funds for education programs and services.”

Other funding enumerated in the accompanying table supports effective instruction, English language learners, financial aid for post-secondary students, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), rural education and more.

IDEA funding provides crucial support for children with disabilities. According to the U.S. Department of Education: “The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a law that makes available a free appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services to those children, supports early intervention services for infants and toddlers and their families, and awards competitive discretionary grants.”

In 2023-24, Colorado received almost $200 million in IDEA funding.

On Thursday, March 20, 2025, Trump signed an executive order directing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to start the process of dismantling the department, though Congress must approve any final action to close it. 

While public schools — including those in Colorado — are largely funded by state and local taxes, federal funding plays an important role. Nationwide, federal funding accounted for 11 percent of K-12 school funding in 2020-21, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.