The University of Montana’s Mansfield Center is set to lose a $6 million federal grant due to Trump Administration cuts.
The Mansfield Center used the grant for programs that advanced civic education and patriotic ideals. Among the programs now in limbo is Big Sky LEAD. It facilitated high school students meeting with elected officials and advocates to learn about state government and practice civic engagement hands-on.
The Department of Defense awarded the grant to the Mansfield Center in late 2023. On Monday, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell in a social media post touted cutting the grant, among several others.
“This stuff is not a core function of our military. This is not what we do; this is a distraction from our core mission.”
But, Mansfield Center director Deena Mansour says she believes the work the grant paid for aligned with President Donald Trump’s administrative priorities.
“We’re a little surprised that we were targeted, and we hope that it was a mistake and that it might be reversed,” Mansour said in a phone interview with MTPR.
She says the Mansfield Center hasn’t appealed the decision yet, but will argue for the grant to continue in its response letter to the Department of Defense.
