‘Like having a hand cut off’: California schools reeling after AmeriCorps cuts

by Adam Echelman and Carolyn Jones | July 18, 2025

IN SUMMARY

Trump cut AmeriCorps, laying off over 5,600 of California’s public service workers. Because of a lawsuit, the state’s program can restart, at least temporarily, but schools and disaster relief sites are still reeling from staffing shortages.

AmeriCorps may have won a temporary legal reprieve to keep operating, but the long-term future looks bleak for the popular program that sends thousands of workers to California schools, food banks, health clinics, and disaster relief sites.

In an effort to rein in government spending, President Donald Trump cut funding for the program in April, prompting California and 23 other states to sue in a Maryland district court. In June, a federal judge granted a temporary injunction, reinstating California’s grants and allowing its AmeriCorps workers to return to their jobs. But many workers who are eligible to return have found other employment.

Congress has already approved funding for AmeriCorps for the next fiscal year, which begins Aug. 1. The Trump administration has yet to release the money, which normally arrives earlier this summer. Josh Fryday, director of the state’s Office of Service and Community Engagement, said he didn’t know when the money would be available — or if it would get released at all.