Policy & Politics

Federal

Education news, analysis, and opinion about federal education policies and federal officials.

  • The Latest

    The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
    Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
    Federal Opinion What’s Behind the Trump Administration's Push to Reform Head Start?
    Assistant Secretary Alex Adams explains the Trump administration’s approach to the early-ed program.
    Rick Hess, September 1, 2026
    •
    7 min read
    Jeanette Vyhanek, a counselor at Wellstone Elementary, teaches a class of kindergarten students at the St. Paul school on Oct. 31, 2025 in Minnesota.
    Jeanette Vyhanek, a counselor at Wellstone Elementary in St. Paul, Minn., teaches a class of kindergarten students on Oct. 31, 2025. Federal grants to expand the ranks of school counselors and other school mental health services were among hundreds terminated by the Trump administration in 2025. New rules from the U.S. Department of Education would give the federal agency greater latitude to end in-progress grants.
    Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune via TNS
    Federal Ed. Dept. Would Have More Power to Cut Off Grants Under New Rules
    The agency last year ended in-progress grants worth more than $2 billion, with courts often objecting.
    Matthew Stone, August 26, 2026
    •
    5 min read
    A student raises her hand to ask a question in her third grade classroom at Highland Elementary School in Columbus, Kan., on Oct. 17, 2022. The arm of the government that oversees education data which tracks educational outcomes for students, faces major challenges ahead due to financial cuts.
    A student raises her hand to ask a question in her 3rd grade classroom at Highland Elementary School in Columbus, Kan., on Oct. 17, 2022. Federal education data-gathering, like the Condition of Education report, includes baseline information on students and schools. But cuts to the Education Department's statistics wings and mounting criticism of how it operates raise questions about how it can best fulfill its mission.
    Charlie Riedel/AP
    Federal Q&A Education Data Collection Has Cratered Under Trump. Can It Be Rebuilt?
    Ed. Dept.'s data-gathering agency is too unstable to adapt to changing needs, a new report claims.
    Sarah D. Sparks, August 25, 2026
    •
    6 min read
    Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights for the Department of Education nominee Kimberly Richey testifies before the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee about her nomination in Washington, D.C., on June 5, 2025.
    Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberley Richey testifies before the Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee at her nomination hearing in Washington on June 5, 2025. A new letter to educators from Richey instructs schools not to consider race at all in school discipline policies, following the Trump administration's rescission of longtime anti-discrimination rules.
    Jason Andrew for Education Week
    Federal Education Department Tells Schools Race Can’t Factor Into Student Discipline
    A letter to educators follows up on last month's rescission of longstanding discrimination rules.
    Mark Walsh, August 18, 2026
    •
    5 min read
    Long Beach, CA - March 20 : Teacher Monica Alvarado, left, leads activities with staff in the infant class at Educare Los Angeles at Long Beach , a very high-quality child care center in Long Beach on Wednesday, March 20, 2024 in Long Beach, CA.
    Teacher Monica Alvarado, left, leads activities with staff in the infant class at Educare Los Angeles at Long Beach, a very high-quality child care center in Long Beach on Wednesday, March 20, 2024 in Long Beach, Calif. Head Start programs for early childhood education will no longer promote bilingualism under a proposed rule change.
    Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times via TNS
    Federal Q&A What Head Start's English-Only Rule Could Mean for English Learners
    Research shows it's not necessary to lose a home language to learn English.
    Ileana Najarro, August 17, 2026
    •
    3 min read
    The Department of Education headquarters in Washington, D.C. on Friday, July 17, 2026.
    The Department of Education headquarters in Washington on Friday, July 17, 2026. Federal funding for education research may be starting to flow, even as the overall spending picture remains unclear.
    Eric Lee for Education Week
    Federal After Months of Standstill, Ed. Dept. Announces New Federal Research Funding
    The agency outlined its fiscal 2027 grantmaking amid questions about its sluggish spending.
    Stephen Sawchuk & Mark Lieberman, August 11, 2026
    •
    7 min read
    President Donald Trump speaks as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., right, and Jayme Franklin listen during a meeting to sign an executive order about vaccines, Monday, Aug. 10, 2026, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.
    President Donald Trump speaks as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., right, and Jayme Franklin listen during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on Aug. 10, 2026. Trump signed an executive order to change childhood vaccination schedules.
    Jacquelyn Martin/ AP Photo
    Federal Trump Signs Executive Order Calling for Spacing Out Childhood Vaccines
    The order calls for splitting the MMR vaccine into three separate shots, a sequence not currently available in the U.S.
    The Associated Press, August 10, 2026
    •
    3 min read
    DFreeman EDW CH 041
    U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., listens as Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., speaks during a Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee session on July 30, 2026 in the U.S. Capitol in Washington. The committee voted to advance a measure that would block many of the Trump administration's transfers of Education Department programs to other agencies.
    Demetrius Freeman for Education Week
    Federal Senate Panel Advances Bill to Block Much of Trump Admin.’s Ed. Dept. Dismantling
    The bill pushes back, but only partially, against Trump's efforts to end the 46-year-old department.
    Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, July 30, 2026
    •
    5 min read
    EL 20260717 EducationWeekAFT109
    The Department of Education headquarters in Washington on July 17, 2026. The Trump administration has been transferring day-to-day management of the agency's programs to other Cabinet-level departments. The administration recently announced the transfer of its civil rights enforcement arm to the Department of Justice.
    Eric Lee for Education Week
    Federal Ed. Dept. Shifts Civil Rights to the Justice Dept.: What It Means for Schools
    The office for civil rights has already changed dramatically. What more will change in the Justice Dept.?
    Alyson Klein, July 27, 2026
    •
    13 min read
    Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought testifies during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in Washington.
    Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought testifies during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill, on June 30, 2026, in Washington. Proposed changes to federal administration of grants have raised concerns among school groups.
    Mariam Zuhaib/AP
    Federal K-12 Community Urges Trump Administration to Rethink Grant Rule Changes
    About 500,000 public comments, including those from school districts, have poured in about proposed rule changes.
    Mark Walsh, July 21, 2026
    •
    8 min read
    Collage of a school building, files, maps, and pinpoints on the map.
    Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week + Canva
    Federal The Ed. Department Calls for a Crackdown on Teacher Sexual Misconduct
    The agency released new guidance for schools and launched 20 new probes into school districts.
    Caitlynn Peetz Stephens & Olina Banerji, July 17, 2026
    •
    5 min read
    A collage showing the dome top of the U.S. Capitol building and the facade of a high school building. An image of a hand holding a magnifying glass over a stack of documents is emerging between the two buildings.
    Illustration by Emily Wright for Education Week + Getty
    Federal Opinion Why Local Control Over Education Won't Work Without Federal Support
    The Trump administration's retreat leaves local education leaders vulnerable.
    Dan Goldhaber & Vivian Wong, July 16, 2026
    •
    6 min read
    APTOPIX America 250 26184689017796
    A flight of fighter jets fly past a picture of President Donald Trump hanging on the U.S. Department of Labor near the Great American State Fair on the National Mall on July 3, 2026, in Washington. The Labor Department has assumed day-to-day management of many K-12 programs as the Trump administration dismantles the Education Department.
    Nathan Howard/AP Photo
    Federal New GOP Bills Would Permanently Shift Ed. Dept. Programs to Other Agencies
    The bills represent the most significant step so far among Republicans to nix the Education Department.
    Alyson Klein, July 10, 2026
    •
    5 min read
    Commencement Ceremony 25353687159009
    Graduates of Maryland's Towson University celebrate their commencement during a ceremony on Dec. 17, 2025. A new analysis finds that educators studying to become administrators could be hit hardest by new federal caps on student borrowing for graduate students.
    Robyn Stevens Brody/Sipa via AP Images
    Federal The Principal Pipeline Could Contract Under New Federal Borrowing Caps
    A new analysis finds that new student loan limits would hit prospective administrators hardest.
    Mark Walsh, July 9, 2026
    •
    4 min read
    West Bloomfield team members huddle as defensive line coach Justin Ibe leads a team prayer before the game against Eisenhower, Friday, Oct. 21, 2022, in West Bloomfield, Mich.
    West Bloomfield team members huddle as defensive line coach Justin Ibe leads a team prayer before a game Oct. 21, 2022, in West Bloomfield, Mich. A federal religious liberty commission recently called for "know your rights" posters to inform public school students of their rights to prayer and religious expression.
    Carlos Osorio/AP
    Federal See What's in Trump Commission's Religious Freedom Agenda for Schools
    Panel recommends federal guidance on parents' opt-out rights, Ten Commandments displays, and other features.
    Evie Blad, July 2, 2026
    •
    8 min read