1. United States
2. Wash.
3. Letter

Dear Representative Baumgartner As your constituent, I am writing to urge you to contact U.S. Department of Education to urge them to release the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 grant awards for the High School Equivalency Program (HEP)/College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP). While Congress has appropriated funding ($52.1 million) for the HEP/CAMP program for FY 2026, the U.S. Department of Education has not released grant award notifications (GAN) and the new grant awards to the grantees. While the Office of Migrant Education staff have completed all the necessary processes to release the awards, they do not have information on the timing of the grant awards to grantees for this year. Delaying the new grants and continuation awards would be very problematic- If there is no funding available, then projects will be forced to lay off staff and make arrangements to wind down projects.  In the event the continuation grant awards are eventually made, it will be difficult to resume running the project since staff will have been laid off and secured new jobs. New fiscal year for HEP and CAMP projects begins July 1, 2025. Therefore, we are asking you to reach out to the U.S. Department of Education to urge them to release the FY 2026 funds that Congress has appropriated for HEP/CAMP. Thank you for your assistance in the continuation of these programs that provide students the opportunities to continue to be successful in their pursuit of the American Dream. Sincerely,