Congress

Read more about members of Congress and the polices they enact that impact K-12 education
Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Ore., conducts a news conference with members of the Democratic Women's Caucus (DWC), during the House Democrats 2025 Issues Conference at the Lansdowne Resort in Leesburg, Va., on March 14, 2025. Reps. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., left, and Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M., are also pictured.
Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Ore., conducts a news conference with members of the Democratic Women's Caucus (DWC), during the House Democrats 2025 Issues Conference at the Lansdowne Resort in Leesburg, Va., on March 14, 2025. Reps. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., left, and Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M., are also pictured.
Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP
Federal Oregon Rep. Says Linda McMahon Has ‘Betrayed Students,’ Pushes Impeachment
The Democratic lawmaker cited the transfer of programs to other agencies as reason to oust the ed. secretary.
Alissa Gary, oregonlive.com, June 25, 2026
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1 min read
readingPanel
A copy of one of the National Reading Panel's work products is shown in this June 17, 2026 photo. The influential report, now more than 25 years old, has long served as a cornerstone of the “science of reading” movement, shaping state legislation, curriculum, and teacher professional development.
Marvin Joseph/Education Week
Reading & Literacy Is It Time for Another National Reading Panel?
The panel's 2000 report on reading has influenced policy for years. Now, Congress is calling for an update.
Sarah Schwartz, June 17, 2026
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7 min read
Delaware Secretary of Education Cynthia Marten meeting with a student while visiting a classroom at the Adams Campus of Oyster-Adams Bilingual School in Washington, Thursday, May 25, 2023. At a U.S. Senate hearing this week, Marten said policymakers should recognize AI's potential while preserving the importance of "human relationships and human judgment."
Delaware Secretary of Education Cynthia Marten visits a classroom at Oyster-Adams Bilingual School in Washington on May 25, 2023. Marten testified on Tuesday before a U.S. Senate subcommittee exploring the role of AI in schools.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
Artificial Intelligence At U.S. Senate Hearing, a Call for AI That Protects 'Human Judgment' in Schools
State and company officials want meaningful guardrails around AI use in schools.
Jennifer Vilcarino, June 16, 2026
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4 min read
WASHINGTON,DC - JUNE 10: Dr. Macquline King, Superintendent and CEO of Chicago Public Schools speaks with Mr. Johnathan Smith, Managing Director, Education and Federal Strategic Advocacy, National Center for Youth Law and Dr. Aaron Spence, Superintendent, Loudoun County Public Schools with US Representative Mark Takano, Democrat from California, before a House Education and Workforce Committee hearing titled “Breaking Trust: Attacks On Parental Rights, Inappropriate Content, And Legal Abuses In America’s Schools” on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, June 10, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Chicago Superintendent Macquline King speaks with Johnathan Smith, the managing director for education and federal strategic advocacy at the National Center for Youth Law, and Loudon County, Va. Superintendent Aaron Spence, before a hearing on parents rights in schools on Capitol Hill on June 10, 2026 in Washington.
Jabin Botsford/For Education Week
Families & the Community Lawmakers Grill Superintendents on Transgender Student Policies
The districts' policies around transgender students were repeatedly questioned.
Evie Blad, June 10, 2026
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5 min read
CapHillJune05
Members of the U.S. House appropriations subcommittee for Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education adjourn after approving a 2027 spending bill in an 11-7, party-line vote at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on June 5, 2026. The spending bill from House Republicans cuts $1.6 billion from Title I.
Marvin Joseph/Education Week
Education Funding Congress Is Working on a New K-12 Budget. See What's Proposed for Key Programs
House lawmakers advanced major cuts to Title I and several competitive grant programs.
Mark Lieberman, June 5, 2026
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1 min read
A worker walks amid the Hall of Columns in the House of Representatives at the Capitol in Washington, on Oct. 4, 2023.
A worker walks amid the Hall of Columns in the House of Representatives at the Capitol in Washington, on Oct. 4, 2023. A U.S. House subcommittee has released a budget bill that includes billions of dollars in education cuts.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Education Funding House GOP Endorses Education Cuts as Talks on Trump's Budget Begin
House appropriators want to cut Title I by 9%—a cut President Donald Trump hasn't proposed.
Mark Lieberman, June 4, 2026
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5 min read
A pair of Miami Arts Studio students hug as others walk between classes, on World Mental Health Day, Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023, at the public 6th-12th grade magnet school, in Miami.
Students hug during World Mental Health Day on Oct. 10, 2023, at a public magnet school in Miami. A coalition of school health professionals are asking Congress to invest in school-based health resources.
Rebecca Blackwell/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement The Hidden Force Behind Student Success: School-Based Health Workers Make Their Case
Organizations representing school-based health workers want legislative support from Congress.
Lauraine Langreo, May 21, 2026
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5 min read
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., right, hugs a supporter during an election night watch party Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Baton Rouge, La.
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., right, hugs a supporter during an election night watch party on Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Baton Rouge, La. Cassidy leads the Senate committee charged with education policy. He was vying for a third Senate term but lost his primary over the weekend.
Gerald Herbert/AP
Federal Senate Days Are Numbered for Top Republican Charged With Ed. Dept. Oversight
Sen. Bill Cassidy was vying for a third term in the Senate but lost his primary over the weekend.
Alyson Klein, May 18, 2026
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4 min read
Education Secretary Linda McMahon arrives to testify during the House Education and Workforce Committee hearing titled "Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Department of Education," in Rayburn building on Thursday, May 14, 2026.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon arrives to testify during the House Education and Workforce Committee hearing on Thursday, May 14, 2026. She defended the movement of dozens of her department's programs to other agencies and a budget proposal that would eliminate dozens of federal education programs.
Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP
Federal 'Creative' or 'Illegal?' Congress Debates Trump's Dismantling of Education Dept.
Republicans praised Linda McMahon for shrinking the federal K-12 footprint. Democrats raised concerns.
Alyson Klein, May 14, 2026
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6 min read
Collage of the Capitol building and McMahon.
Collage with Jason Andrew for Education Week + Canva
Federal Democrats Challenge Plan to Dismantle Office for English Learners
The Education Department notified Congress in February of its plans to dismantle OELA.
Ileana Najarro, May 13, 2026
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6 min read
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Secretary of Education Linda McMahon prepares to testify before a Senate appropriations subcommittee on the U.S. Department of Education's fiscal 2027 budget proposal in Washington on April 28, 2026.
Marvin Joseph for Education Week
Federal McMahon Still Wants to Relocate Special Ed.—And Other Budget Hearing Takeaways
The education secretary also told skeptical lawmakers that Ed. Dept. program transfers are working.
Mark Lieberman, April 28, 2026
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6 min read
The likeness of George Washington is seen on a U.S. one dollar bill, March 13, 2023, in Marple Township, Pa. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says it expects the federal government will be awash in debt over the next 30 years.
Newly published budget documents show the U.S. Department of Education, in the first year of President Donald Trump's second term, took roughly $1 billion Congress appropriated for specific education programs and spent it differently than how lawmakers intended—or didn't spend it all.
Matt Slocum/AP
Education Funding Trump Sidestepped Congress on More Than $1 Billion in Ed. Spending Last Year
Newly published documents show how the Ed. Dept. departed from Congress' plans.
Mark Lieberman, April 24, 2026
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13 min read
Students use their cellphones as they leave for the day the Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts High School in downtown Los Angeles on Aug. 13, 2024.
Students use their cellphones as they leave for the day the Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts High School in downtown Los Angeles on Aug. 13, 2024.
Damian Dovarganes/AP
Federal A Federal School Cellphone Policy? Big Barriers Stand in the Way
Other countries have nationwide restrictions, but in the U.S., states and districts have set the agenda.
Lauraine Langreo, April 21, 2026
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6 min read
An art teacher uses the AI tool Google Gemini in her high school classroom, on Jan. 22, 2026, Riverside, Calif.
An art teacher uses the AI tool Google Gemini in her high school classroom, on Jan. 22, 2026, Riverside, Calif.
Damian Dovarganes/AP
Artificial Intelligence Teachers Want 'Guardrails and Guidance' on AI Use, Experts Tell Congress
Technology is evolving faster than policy can keep up, experts tell Congress.
Sarah D. Sparks, February 24, 2026
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3 min read