Over 18 Million Latino Students Threatened by Trump’s Attack on the Department of Education
For over 6 Million of Latino children, school meals are their only source of food each day.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Voto Latino, the national organization dedicated to empowering Latino communities through civic engagement, strongly condemns President Trump’s ongoing attacks on the Department of Education—a reckless and deeply harmful move that will devastate millions of students, particularly Latino and other children of color who rely on public education for opportunity, stability, and a pathway to success.
“The Department of Education announced mass firings of its employees. This drastic staff reduction will have serious consequences for millions of Latino student loan borrowers, those seeking loan forgiveness, and college students applying for federal aid. Combined with Trump’s broader efforts to dismantle the Department, these actions amount to an all-out assault on the future of America’s students.
The Department of Education exists to ensure that every child—regardless of background, income, or ability—has access to a quality education. For Latinos, public education is a vital pathway to upward mobility and the American Dream. Stripping away these essential protections and resources would be devastating for millions of families. Americans did not vote for this, and they do not support it.”
These cuts, along with Trump’s continued efforts to weaken the Department of Education, pose a direct threat to:
- Latino College Students and Financial Aid: Millions of students rely on federal grants and loans to access higher education. Hispanic enrollment in higher education reached nearly 3.8 million students in 2022. Nearly 75% of Latino college students receive financial aid.
- Latino Children in Poverty: For many children, the meals they receive at school are the only ones they get in a day. More than 6 million Latino children rely on free or reduced-price lunches through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). Eliminating the Department of Education will exacerbate food insecurity in already struggling communities.
- Children with Disabilities: The Department of Education ensures that students with disabilities receive the support and accommodations they need. There are approximately 1,125,000 Latino children with disabilities in U.S. public schools.
- Civil Rights Protections: There are more than 14.4 million Latino students in kindergarten through 12th-grade public schools across the country. Civil rights protections against discrimination based on race, gender, and disability would also be gutted.
States with the highest Latino student populations will face the greatest consequences:
- California: 3,275,030 Latino students (56.1% of all K-12 students)
- Texas: 2,922,144 Latino students (53.2% of all K-12 students)
- Florida: 1,067,662 Latino students (36.4% of all K-12 students)
These numbers underscore the vast scale of the harm being inflicted on Latino communities across the country.
“Voto Latino will not stand idly by as Trump threatens the right to education for millions. We urge educators, parents, and other allies to continue to organize, advocate, and mobilize so that all students have well-resourced schools while also urging Congress to overturn this disastrous decision outright. Our children’s futures are on the line.”
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Voto Latino is a civic advocacy organization dedicated to educating and empowering the next generation of Latino voters while working to build a more inclusive and representative democracy. Since its founding, Voto Latino has registered nearly two million voters. In 2024, the organization took legal action to protect voting rights, filing multiple lawsuits in Texas, Arizona, and North Carolina to safeguard access to the ballot ahead of the elections.