AmeriCorps cuts threaten Robert Louis Stevenson Elementary garden; SFUSD and coalition of attorneys general sue

An apparent reduction in AmeriCorps funding is jeopardizing the gardening program at Robert Louis Stevenson Elementary School in San Francisco, supporters said, and the San Francisco Unified School District has filed a lawsuit against AmeriCorps while a coalition of 22 state attorneys general announced legal action related to the funding.

An email to parents this week said the gardening program is "in jeopardy because of cuts made by the Department of Government Efficiency," and school supporters said the district cannot afford to keep the program's gardening teacher. The program serves more than 400 students at the school, supporters said.

"I have two grandsons, a second grader and a kindergartner," said Rhonda Huntales, who described her support for the school's gardening program. "We're trying to teach them healthy eating habits and then also for them to understand how things grow." Huntales said she plans to participate in fundraising to try to preserve the program.

A San Francisco Unified School District spokesperson did not answer specific questions from ABC7 but provided a statement saying in part that the district "has filed a lawsuit against AmeriCorps for illegally conditioning continued program funding on compliance with President Trump's executive orders and actions." The statement said a hearing is scheduled for next month.

In related legal action, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a coalition of 22 attorneys general filing suit against the president. In a statement reported by ABC7, the coalition said, "Trump and Elon Musk are attempting to cancel $400,000,000 in grama. Accounting for more than 40% of the agency's budget, Trump and Elon Musk don't have the right to gut AmeriCorps. We won't allow the president to demolish an agency that represents the best of who we are as a nation, the best of what we can be." The broadcast transcript attributes that language to the coalition's announcement; the individual speaker for the quotation is not specified in the transcript.

ABC7 said it reached out to the district to ask about cuts to other programs at different schools; the station reported the district did not answer that specific question. The report did not identify which court will hold the hearing next month.

Huntales said she hopes the program can be funded and reversed: "But I do hope that this can somehow be funded and that it will be reversed. That's what we all want is for the best things for our children."