President-elect Trump will bring major changes to the education world in his second administration.
President Trump's education plan is not yet fully developed, but the issues he wants to tackle fundamentally change the way schools operate, from potentially abolishing the Department of Education to promoting federal school choice programs. It is something that can be changed.
Here are the top five education policies President Trump is likely to enact:
Abolition of the Ministry of Education
President Trump's most talked-about issue in education is the abolition of the federal Department of Education.
The move is backed by advocates who view the department as a waste of taxpayer money and say other agencies can take on its important duties.
President Trump has not said how he would abolish education, but “Project 2025,” a conservative blueprint designed for him, would cut programs deemed unnecessary and It has laid out plans to transfer other programs, such as the Office of Civil Rights, to the Department of Justice.
Killing the department would require the consent of Congress, which will be under full Republican control next year.
Vicki Murray, director of the Washington Policy Center's Center on Education and a member of President Trump's transition team in 2016, said, I think it is necessary to create a team.”
“Because there's nothing more local than empowered parents. So I think that's an underlying theme in President-elect Trump's education policy arena,” Murray added.
federal school choice
Enacting federal school choice legislation is a huge possibility over the next four years, and President Trump has listed it as one of his top priorities as a candidate for secretary of education.
When President Trump announced his nomination, he said Linda McMahon “will continue to work tirelessly to expand 'choice' to every state in America.”
The Educational Choice for Children Act, which was previously introduced in Congress but not signed into law, provides K-12 scholarships that parents can use to send their children to private or non-public schools. The purpose is to encourage donations to nonprofit organizations that provide money.
The bill was previously signed by President Trump's running mate, J.D. Vance.
Jeanne Allen, founder and CEO of the Center for Educational Reform, said President Trump “will either create a federal program or create a need for and ease of funding for school choice programs.” I see it as a possibility.
Opponents of school choice worry that the federal government will seek to impose obligations on states that do not support the movement.
“We are definitely concerned about how the incoming administration will pursue privatization at the federal level. We will also be watching to see if there are states that can be persuaded to implement voucher programs. ,” said Kuvira Huddleston, policy manager for fair school funding at the Ed Trust.
student loan
President Trump has not made any specific promises about how he will deal with student loan debt, but he has publicly criticized President Biden's approach to the issue and suggested an end to the relief package.
Biden canceled more than $170 billion in student loans, the most in presidential history.
The president also created a new income-enhanced repayment plan called SAVE, which has so far held up in court.
The Department of Education is currently negotiating a rule to allow more student loans for people with certain circumstances, such as financial hardship.
President Trump could withdraw from both of these efforts, a likely scenario given Republican lawsuits against them.
During his first term, President Trump wanted to phase out the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program and limit borrower defenses, but his efforts lacked support from Congress.
“I think it’s a student loan.” […] I think it deserves more scrutiny, and it's a welcome area of inquiry and a discussion that's long overdue. But the idea of making student loans free, canceling student loans for some, but not everyone, is simply not the right policy path,'' Murray said.
Title IX and transgender students
President Trump has announced plans to make changes to Title IX and how transgender students are treated in schools.
The president-elect wants to change Biden's revised Title IX, which provided discrimination protections based on a person's sexual orientation and gender identity. He said the change was a “day one” priority.
“The left-wing gender insanity imposed on our children is child abuse. It's that simple. This is my plan to stop the chemical, physical, and psychological mutilation of our young people,” Trump said in a video in January. He spoke at
He also spoke openly about his desire to ban transgender Americans from choosing to use sports teams and locker rooms.
“I have been very vocal about withholding federal funding from universities with DEI policies and programs that allow biological males to participate in women's sports or enter women's locker rooms,” Murray said. ” he said.
Curriculum and DEI
President Trump has repeatedly said he is willing to withhold federal funding for curriculum and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) measures in K-12 schools.
“Instead of indoctrinating young people with inappropriate racial, sexual, and political material (which is what we are doing now), our schools should We must be fully focused on preparing our students to succeed in the world.”
President Trump told K-12 schools that teaching critical race theory would result in funding being taken away, but only a small portion of schools' funding comes from the federal government. .
“There are many controversies surrounding the politicization of curriculum and children's classrooms, including critical race theory, diversity equity, inclusion policies, and the failure to inform parents about their children's health decisions. It’s happening,” Murray said. Of that. ”
Federal funding could have more influence at the university level, with President Trump threatening it over DEI programs that some Republican-controlled states, such as Florida, have outlawed for state universities. .
The president-elect said he would “tax donations, impose budget adjustments, and impose fines of up to the full amount of donations if organizations are deemed to have promoted Way-ism.” [which] It risks eroding academic freedom, institutional autonomy, and the democratic purpose of higher education,” said Lynn Pascrella, president of the Association of American Universities.
