Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, a senior member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, slammed New York State Education Department’s (NYSED) attempt to defund schools in New York’s 21st District to advance their woke agenda.

The New York State Education Department is threatening the future of schools in New York’s 21st District by withholding funding if schools do not remove and rename mascots by the end of the school year. This would impact Cambridge Central School DistrictFonda-Fultonville Central School Districtand Glens Falls City School District, among others.

“The New York State Education Department is threatening to defund our schools to enforce their woke agenda,” Stefanik said. “Upstate New York and the North Country take pride in our history and replacing these mascots is caving to the Far Left mob at the expense of our students’ education while failing to provide actual support to Native American tribes. While schools in New York’s 21st District are working tirelessly to educate our students to equip the next generation after pandemic lockdowns deprived them of educational and developmental opportunities, New York State Education Department’s priorities are entirely misplaced. As New York’s most senior member on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, I will stand against the Far Left woke agenda and provide critical oversight to ensure schools in New York’s 21st District have the funds to educate our students.”