PBS has furloughed some of its staff weeks after the Trump administration began a push to defund the public broadcaster.
A PBS spokesperson said in a statement to USA TODAY that 25% of PBS Kids employees have been furloughed “because of the decision by the Department of Education to abruptly cancel the Ready To Learn grant.”
“This decision removes a critical resource that for over 30 years has enabled us to create high-quality, educational PBS KIDS content while opening up worlds of possibilities for millions of children across the country,” the statement said.
PBS President Paula Kerger announced the furloughs during an address at the PBS Annual Meeting on May 19.
“We’ve been forced to furlough really talented members of our staff at PBS as we figure out how to continue to advance the PBS Kids service,” Kerger said. “We are going to keep fighting.”
What is the Ready To Learn grant?
On May 2, the Department of Education canceled the Ready To Learn grant, which helped fund educational children’s shows, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) said in a May 6 news release.
The Ready To Learn grant is a federal grant funded by the Department of Education and Congress that helps develop PBS Kids programming, according to PBS. It has historically helped fund a slew of popular shows, including “Sesame Street,” “Clifford the Big Red Dog” and “Reading Rainbow,” CPB said.
“Its general goal is to promote early learning and school readiness, with a particular interest in reaching low-income children,” according to the Education Department’s website.
Ready To Learn grant Funding for PBS children’s shows killed by Trump administration citing ‘woke propaganda’
The grant is renewed on a five-year basis, and the current cycle − which was approved by the first Trump administration − was set to expire on Sept. 30, according to CPB.
The termination of the grant resulted in a loss of $23 million that would have gone to children’s games and educational shows, CPB said.
Why did the Trump administration cut the Ready To Learn grant?
Madi Biedermann, a spokesperson for the Department of Education, said in a previous statement to USA TODAY that the cuts targeted “racial justice educational programming.”
“This is not aligned with Administration priorities. The Trump Department of Education will prioritize funding that supports meaningful learning and improving student outcomes, not divisive ideologies and woke propaganda,” Biedermann said.
Sara DeWitt, senior vice president and general manager of PBS Kids, said in a previous statement to USA TODAY that the broadcaster “will continue to fight in order to maintain our essential service.”
Trump ramps up attempts to defund public media
Earlier in May, President Donald Trump also signed an executive order pushing the CPB to cease funding to PBS and NPR.
However, the CPB is not a federal agency subject to the president’s orders. The corporation provides operational support for public television and radio stations.
The CPB received $535 million in federal funding for 2025, according to its budget.
Contributing: Fernando Cervantes Jr. and Kathryn Palmer, USA TODAY
Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. She can be reached at melina.khan@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: PBS Kids furloughs 25% of staff after federal funding cuts
