If you’ve been leading a school this year, you’ve probably had the same thought more than once: “Can we please get one thing to stay stable long enough to plan?”
For months, federal funding was a moving target. When big programs are on the chopping block, schools do what schools always do: protect the basics, slow down anything new, and keep the ship steady with whatever you already have on hand.
On February 3, 2026, Congress approved a fiscal 2026 budget package that keeps funding roughly level for virtually every existing K–12 program, rejecting proposals that would have cut billions from federal education investments (Education Week).
That’s not just policy news. It’s planning news.
This is the moment many leaders shift from “How do we survive cuts?” back to “What can we do for students now that we know the funding’s still there?”
Below is the school leader’s guide to unlocking value from the key funding streams we know will be renewed in full.
Table of Contents
Title I Funding: Protect Time + Make Supports Consistent
Title II Funding: Invest in Capacity That Sticks
Title IV Funding: Fund the System Behind Intervention + Enrichment
IDEA Funding: Use Stability to Reduce Coordination Drag
Charter Funding: If You’re Growing or Starting a Charter, Invest Early in Consistency
Make the Most of Renewed Funding
Title I Funding: Protect Time + Make Supports Consistent
100% of 25/26 fund approved for 26/27 – $18.4B
Title I is designed to support schools serving higher percentages of students from low-income families. Title I matters because it helps schools close gaps by improving the day-to-day conditions that keep students learning consistently—especially for students who are most likely to lose time, support, or access when systems aren’t steady.
How to Make the Most of it This Year:
- Invest in instructional time protection as a schoolwide priority. From tardy management to hall passes, build routines and expectations that keep students learning, not wandering.
- Strengthen your early identification approach so patterns get addressed before they become chronic with digital reporting systems that bring insights to the forefront.
- Reinforce your intervention operating model with consistency across teams and a system that’s flexible and easy to sustain.
Title II Funding: Invest in Capacity That Sticks
100% of 25/26 fund approved for 26/27 – $2.2B
Title II matters because educator quality is the multiplier behind every student outcome. When teachers and school leaders have stronger support systems, clearer expectations, and practical ways to improve their craft, academic gains are easier to sustain. Title II is a strategic place to invest in professional growth, recruitment and retention, and the day-to-day conditions that help great educators stay great—and stay in the building.
How to Make the Most of it This Year:
- Invest in classroom management capacity that reduces disruptions and protects teaching time across the building
- Build shared staff expectations so teachers aren’t operating in silos and students experience a consistent standard
- Strengthen teacher experience and retention by reducing the “extra load” that pulls teachers away from instruction
Title IV Funding: Fund the System Behind Intervention + Enrichment
100% of 25/26 Title IV A and B funds approved for 26/27 – $1.4B and $1.3B respectively
Title IV funding enables schools to invest in the full student experience—building safer, more supportive learning environments, expanding access to well-rounded opportunities, and strengthening programs that keep students connected to school during and beyond the school day.
How to Make the Most of it This Year:
- Strengthen SEL and early intervention capacity by improving how patterns are noticed, supports are coordinated, and follow-through happens
- Build stronger extended learning participation by ensuring flexible periods before, during and after school are easy to join, easy to manage, and consistent for students
- Prioritize visibility and program insight so leaders can see reach, participation, and hotspots clearly—and adjust while the year is in motion
IDEA Funding: Use Stability to Reduce Coordination Drag
100% of 25/26 fund approved for 26/27 – $15.5B
IDEA funds support the services and structures that help students with disabilities succeed. The strongest investments make supports easier to deliver consistently—aligned to IEPs, coordinated across teams, and workable in the day-to-day rhythm of school.
How to Make the Most of it This Year:
- Invest in tailored supports with usable insight, so teams can identify needs early and translate them into consistent interventions that actually get delivered
- Build coordination and continuity across special education and general education—shared routines that keep follow-through steady even when staffing shifts
- Strengthen visibility and communication that drives action, reducing missed instruction and keeping educators and families aligned without adding more manual work
Charter Funding: If You’re Growing or Starting a Charter, Invest Early in Consistency
125% of 25/26 fund approved for 26/27 – $0.5B
Charter schools that scale smoothly usually aren’t “doing more”—they’re running a clear set of routines consistently from the start. Charter funds matter because they help schools build an operating model that scales—turning the school’s vision into consistent daily practice across staff, grades, and programs.
How to Make the Most of it This Year:
- Standardize day-to-day operations. Student support, intervention/enrichment routines, and staff visibility.
- Avoid patchwork tools. Growth amplifies inconsistency fast.
- Strengthen team coordination, so follow-through is consistent and shared
Closing
Budget stability doesn’t automatically create impact. What changes outcomes is what schools can run consistently on a Tuesday in October—not just what looks good on a plan in February.
As you revisit your plan right now, use this moment to make one high-leverage upgrade: strengthen the routines behind your supports and opportunities. Pick the work that currently takes the most coordination—intervention placement, enrichment participation, expanded learning time—and build it in a way that reduces chasing, improves follow-through, and makes results easier to see.
That’s how renewed funding turns into something students and staff actually feel.
