April 9, 2021
Statement on the Biden Administration’s Proposed Fiscal Year 2022 Budget 

The Biden administration’s budget proposal released today would make a significant investment in schools that serve high percentages of children from low-income families and would provide other important increases at this critical moment for our nation’s students and schools. Chiefs for Change has long advocated that schools serving children with the most intensive needs receive resources proportionate to that challenge. We are especially pleased with the administration’s proposed $20 billion increase for Title I schools.

In its budget plan, the administration also proposed taking important steps to meet children’s extensive and varied health needs, especially given the widespread trauma and loss of Covid-19. We applaud the $1 billion in funding for counselors, nurses, and mental health professionals.

The pandemic is taking a toll on students across the nation, but we cannot allow it to derail their dreams for the future. Students must have reliable and affordable pathways to college and careers. Chiefs for Change continues to call on the administration and Congress to double the maximum award for Pell Grants, which help millions of low- and middle-income students enroll in college and earn a degree. We commend the administration for its plan to provide Pell Grants for DREAMers and to increase the maximum grant award by $400. Further, we urge the administration to remain true to its statement today that this proposed increase is but a “first step in a more comprehensive proposal to deliver on the President’s goal to double the grant.”