Sligo Law Group is honored to continue representing the organizations alongside the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Eimer Stahl LLP.
Sligo Law Group has represented Afterschool for Children and Teens (ACT Now Illinois) and Metropolitan Family Services since they first received notice in December 2025 that the Department of Education was discontinuing their Full-Service Community Schools grants. We are honored to continue standing with them as part of the legal team before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
The appeal centers on the plaintiffs’ First Amendment claims: that the Department discontinued the grants based on viewpoints expressed in ACT Now’s grant applications, including support for equity and inclusion. The plaintiffs seek reversal of the denial of preliminary relief while the case proceeds.
The grants supported partnerships in 32 schools across 16 Illinois school districts, serving nearly 19,000 students and families through afterschool learning, health and mental health supports, food assistance, family engagement, and other community resources.
Sligo Law Group represents ACT Now Illinois and Metropolitan Family Services alongside the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Eimer Stahl LLP.
Afterschool for Children and Teens (ACT NOW) and Metropolitan Family Services v. United States Department of Education and Linda McMahon, No. 26-2473 (7th Cir.).
Afterschool for Children and Teens (ACT NOW) and Metropolitan Family Services v. United States Department of Education and Linda McMahon, No. 25-cv-15704 (N.D. Ill.).