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Happy Public Schools Week! As we celebrate public education, it’s important to remain focused on recent attempts to undermine it. It’s been a rough couple of weeks for federal education policy: we’ve had Linda McMahon’s concerning confirmation hearing, the onset of impacts from executive orders, and U.S. Department of Education layoffs and contract cancellations.

The Department of Government Efficiency initiative has begun working to dismantle the Department of Education, implementing cuts and freezes to contracts for education research and teacher training grants. Many programs have felt the pinch, including services for students with disabilities transitioning out of high school and mental health supports. These cuts were made days after President Trump called the department a “big con job” and said he’d like it to be “closed immediately.” The Administration also has laid off an unspecified number of Department employees.  

During Linda McMahon’s February 13 confirmation hearing, the nominee for Secretary of Education agreed to distribute any money Congress has approved and rejected the idea that she would violate any law. But the nominee also evaded many questions, including what would happen to specific programs if the Department of Education was abolished, and whether schools could lose federal funding for teaching Black history courses. Some of McMahon’s answers aligned closely with information in Project 2025.  

In the meantime, President Trump has issued new executive orders on education and the impact of previous orders has begun to surface. One recent EO would end federal funding for schools with COVID-19 vaccine requirements — despite the fact that K-12 schools no longer require COVID-19 vaccines and only 15 U.S. colleges do. The President’s previous executive order banning funding to schools that support diversity, equity, and inclusion, is beginning to affect Title I schools. For instance, the EO has put at risk a teacher training partnership between colleges and Title I schools in Winston-Salem, North Carolina that was designed to assist 24,000 students over the next few years. Community leaders are now working to raise funding on their own.  

Events & Resources for Action

The National Education Association has a webpage dedicated to sending lawmakers a pre-written message to oppose vouchers. Reach out to your members of Congress about protecting public education today!  

The Hechinger Report analyzes President Trump’s weekly actions on education and breaks them down in an accessible way.