As the nearly month-long shutdown of the federal government continues, officials have indicated that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits will be halted beginning November 1. M.A.S.S. Executive Director Mary Bourque issued the following statement about the potential loss of food assistance benefits and other impacts of federal upheaval on Massachusetts students and families:
Statement from Mary M. Bourque, Ed.D.
Executive Director, Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents
October 29, 2025
“On November 1, if the federal government shutdown continues for a 32nd day, more than one million Massachusetts residents will lose access to a critical lifeline: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Nearly one third of these vulnerable residents are children – the students we are entrusted to educate and nurture in our public schools. Depriving these families of the help they need to put food on the table is simply unconscionable.
“Every day, district leaders across the Commonwealth continue to navigate the impact of the Trump Administration’s attempts to dismantle public education – the bedrock of our democracy. We remain deeply concerned about the systematic dissolution of the U.S. Department of Education, particularly uncertainty about federal funding, the potential loss of critical services to educate students with disabilities, and the removal of protections for civil rights.
“Here in Massachusetts, the birthplace of public education, we must continue to speak out against the abuse of power for political gain and fight for the health, safety, and success of all children and families.”