PBS has furloughed 25% of its PBS Kids staff after the U.S. Department of Education unexpectedly ended a major funding program. The program had supported educational children’s television for more than 30 years.
The news came during PBS President Paula Kerger’s keynote speech at the 2025 PBS Annual Meeting in Atlanta. She announced the layoffs just days after the Department of Education shut down the Ready To Learn grant program for 2020–25. The decision halted federal funding for PBS and 44 local public media stations midway through the grant cycle.
“We’ve had to furlough very talented staff at PBS as we work out how to continue delivering the PBS Kids service,” said Kerger. “We are going to keep fighting.”
The Ready To Learn program has long funded the creation of educational TV for children, especially those from underserved communities. Its sudden end now puts PBS Kids programming and related jobs at risk. Freelance writers and producers who depend on steady production contracts are especially affected.
A PBS spokesperson confirmed the extent of the layoffs. The spokesperson described the loss of federal support as a serious threat to PBS’s ability to produce quality, accessible content. “This decision takes away a key resource that helped us create educational PBS Kids content for over 30 years,” the spokesperson said. “It opened up new worlds for millions of children across the country.”
The Writers Guild of America East criticized the cuts, calling them “an attack on children and families.” The union urged Congress to restore full federal funding for public children’s programming. “Our children deserve no less,” the statement read.
Other grant recipients have also been affected. Twin Cities PBS (TPT) in Minnesota has cut staff after losing support. TPT had received $4.6 million in Ready To Learn funding to produce its animated series Skillsville during the current cycle.
PBS Kids remains a fixture in American households. But its future, at least in its current form, is now uncertain.
