FY26 Funding Finalized This past Tuesday, President Trump signed into law a $50 billion compromise foreign affairs spending bill that includes $691.5 million for the Nita M. Lowey Basic Education Fund. Although this represents a 25 percent reduction from FY25 levels, the FY26 allocation reflects a major achievement for GCE-US and our members and partners.
Through sustained advocacy over many months, we were able to preserve a substantial portion of this critical funding, an important signal of Congress’s continued commitment to expanding access to quality education for children and youth around the world. | |
Letters to Legislators We’re thrilled to collaborate with Girl Up this month on Letters to Legislators, a national collective‑action campaign empowering high school and college students to champion period equity in their schools.
An estimated 500 million girls, women, and people with periods around the world lack access to period products and adequate facilities for period management and 2 in 5 people in the U.S. have struggled to afford the menstrual supplies they need. Period poverty affects education, health, dignity, and opportunity. Together, we're calling on policymakers to support the Good Samaritan Menstrual Products Act, a bipartisan bill that tackles period poverty by expanding access to donated menstrual products in communities nationwide. By urging our representatives to support this legislation, we can help ensure that everyone who menstruates can access the supplies they need. To prepare for this campaign, GCE‑US Program Director, Grace Rector, and 2025 GCE‑US Youth Advocate, Buse Arici, participated in a training for young leaders across the country who are gathering for local letter‑writing events. During the training, Buse encouraged participants to "Share their own stories and experiences" and to personalize their outreach to Congress. | |
Global Educational Community The Global Education Community (GEC) partners with schools to help them grow into dynamic learning ecosystems where students are prepared to navigate complexity, collaborate across differences, and solve real-world problems with purpose. GEC exists to support learning environments that develop both human capacity and academic rigor. Education should help people learn not only what to think, but how to be human in an increasingly complex and interconnected world. As societies face rapid change, global challenges, and growing inequities, schools are being asked to prepare learners to navigate uncertainty with empathy, creativity, and responsibility. Through their partnership with schools, such as the Academy of Global Studies High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, students have gained access to global opportunities and partnerships that connect classroom learning to issues that matter. GEC also invests deeply in educators, providing professional learning, global partnerships, and tools that support inclusive, equitable learning environments. Learning extends beyond the classroom—into communities, across cultures, and through real-world collaboration—reflecting how knowledge and understanding develop in life beyond school. By aligning academic learning with human and global capacities, GEC helps schools prepare learners not just for success, but for meaningful participation in shaping a more just and sustainable future. | |
