With education facing impending cuts at the federal level, the new $61 billion state budget continues free school lunches, community college, and regional transportation.

The Education Department dismissed more than 3,400 civil rights complaints in about three months under the Trump administration, per a July court filing. Why it matters: The Education Department has pledged to clear its backlog of civil rights complaints despite closing half of the offices that investigate the allegations.

"Today's action means that Massachusetts is one step closer to making schools cell phone-free," said Senate President Karen Spilka and Senator Jason Lewis, Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Education in a statement.

The school district “knowingly allowed its schools to become a hostile environment for Jewish students, and it has failed to promptly and effectively address this ongoing problem,” according to

Community college enrollment among adult learners in Massachusetts has surged for a second consecutive year, with new data showing a nearly 40% increase in students taking advantage of the state’s

Congress sent schools roughly $200 billion in three rounds of pandemic relief aid between March 2020 and March 2021. Funding for three programs awarded during the Biden administration—ESSER III for public schools; a grant program for supporting homeless students; and one for private schools—was due to be fully spent by January 2025.

The freeze on close to $7 billion in education grants would cost RI nearly $30 million, 7% of the state’s K-12 federal funding.