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Federal

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

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    People at a Democratic event react during an election night event at a hotel on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026.
    People at a Democratic event react during an election night event at a hotel on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026.
    J. Scott Applewhite/AP
    Federal Video What the Midterm Elections Could Mean for Schools: 4 Takeaways
    What Democratic victories and an electoral bright spot for Trump could mean for schools.
    Matthew Stone & Yi-Jo Shen, November 5, 2026
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    1 min read
    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 Here's What the Blue Wave Could Mean for Education
    Rick Hess and Andy Rotherham analyze how the midterms will shape school choice, sports, and more.
    Rick Hess, November 4, 2026
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    9 min read
    House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., gives encouragement to volunteers at a phone bank at a hotel on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026.
    House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., gives encouragement to volunteers at a phone bank at a hotel on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. Democrats are on track to be back in charge in the lower chamber, giving them leverage to push their own K-12 agenda and resist President Donald Trump's.
    J. Scott Applewhite/AP
    Federal Democrats Will Control Congress. What Educators Can Expect
    Democrats won key races across the country, with implications for K-12 policymaking in Washington.
    Alyson Klein, November 4, 2026
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    6 min read
    Education Secretary Linda McMahon prepares for an interview at the Republican convention Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, in Dallas.
    Education Secretary Linda McMahon prepares for an interview at the Republican convention Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, in Dallas. The American Federation of Teachers says in a new lawsuit that the U.S. Department of Education is delaying loan forgiveness decisions for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, for which teachers qualify.
    Alex Brandon/AP
    Federal Teachers' Union Sues Trump Administration Over Student Loan Forgiveness
    The American Federation of Teachers and nine student loan borrowers allege the agency is delaying Public Service Loan Forgiveness decisions.
    Cris Tolomia, Quartz, November 2, 2026
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    2 min read
    Government research, State budgets, public education, back on track, Education Agenda
    Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty
    Federal Opinion Margaret Spellings and Arne Duncan: The Ed. Agenda We Can Agree On
    We need to get education back on track, write the former Ed. Secretaries. Let’s start at the top.
    Margaret Spellings & Arne Duncan, October 12, 2026
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    5 min read
    Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., speaks during a prayer vigil held by the Chesapeake Coalition of Black Pastors at The Mount (Mount Lebanon Baptist Church) in Chesapeake, Va., Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022, for the six people killed at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Va., when a manager opened fire with a handgun before an employee meeting Tuesday night.
    Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., speaks during a prayer vigil in Chesapeake, Va., on Nov. 27, 2022. Scott is the ranking Democrat on the U.S. House of Representatives' education committee and will seek the panel's chairmanship if Democrats win a House majority in next month's elections.
    Carolyn Kaster/AP
    Federal Q&A A Top Democrat Breaks Down His Party's Plans for K-12 in a House Majority
    If Democrats retake the House, Rep. Bobby Scott may be in a position to set his chamber’s K-12 agenda.
    Alyson Klein, October 9, 2026
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    5 min read
    House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., the top Democrat in the Republican-majority House, is joined by Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., chair of the House Democratic Caucus, as they criticize President Donald Trump and his policies while talking to reporters about the approaching midterm election, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026.
    House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries speaks at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 17, 2026. He's joined by Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., who chairs the House Democratic Caucus. If Democrats gain a majority of either chamber of Congress after next month's elections, they'll be able to hold oversight hearings on and launch investigations into the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education.
    J. Scott Applewhite/AP
    Federal What a Democratic Congress Could Mean for Trump's K-12 Agenda
    They may try to reverse—or at least investigate—the Trump admin.'s efforts to dismantle the Ed. Dept.
    Alyson Klein, October 8, 2026
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    9 min read
    Image of file folders with tabs called "funding" "grants" "projects" and a blank note paper paperclipped to the outside.
    Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week + Getty
    Federal The Future of Education Research: More Partisan and Largely Left to States?
    As Trump administration works to change federal grants, outside researchers try to regroup.
    Sarah D. Sparks, October 6, 2026
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    6 min read
    Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, center, is joined from left by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., the GOP whip, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., as he speaks to reporters ahead of a Wednesday meeting with President Donald Trump, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks to reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, June 23, 2026.
    Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., speaks to reporters ahead of a meeting with President Donald Trump at the Capitol in Washington on June 23, 2026. Cotton is one of the sponsors of a bipartisan bill that would create a grant program for states to implement school cellphone bans or restrictions.
    J. Scott Applewhite/AP
    Federal Bipartisan Bill in Congress Would Help Schools Put Cellphone Bans or Restrictions in Place
    The bill would establish a federal grant program to support state efforts to restrict cellphones.
    Lauraine Langreo, October 2, 2026
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    5 min read
    Giant tax funnel drops money into a public school building. Federal tax scholarships, public schools, private schools, charter schools
    Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty
    Federal Opinion Public Educators Are Skeptical of the New Federal Tax Credits. They Needn't Be
    Unlike vouchers, the new scholarships can benefit students choosing to attend public schools.
    Deborah A. Gist & Thomas Arnett, September 29, 2026
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    5 min read
    NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 13: Local elementary schools participate in the annual Brooklyn Gay Pride Parade, celebrating its 30th year, June 13, 2026 in the Park Slope neighborhood of the borough of Brooklyn, New York City.
    Local elementary schools participate in the annual Brooklyn Gay Pride Parade, celebrating its 30th year on June 13, 2026, in the Park Slope neighborhood of the borough of Brooklyn, New York City. The Trump administration has officially rescinded a Biden-era regulation that extended Title IX's prohibition on sex discrimination to cover discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
    Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images
    Federal Ed. Dept. Officially Kills Biden Rule That Added LGBTQ+ Protections to Title IX
    The Education Department reinstates 2020 Title IX regulations effectively in place since early 2025.
    Mark Walsh, September 28, 2026
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    4 min read
    Letters on the Department of Education building are missing after removal of America 250 banners, which included those of Booker T. Washington, Catharine Beecher and Charlie Kirk, on March 18, 2026, in Washington.
    Letters on the Department of Education building in Washington are missing in this March 18, 2026 photo. The Trump administration continues to push for the agency's closure while also touting its help for states.
    Allison Robbert/AP
    Federal Trump Admin. Touts Ed. Dept.'s Help for States as It Tries to Shut It Down
    The Trump administration pushes the Education Department's closure, while touting its help for states.
    Mark Lieberman, September 9, 2026
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    6 min read
    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
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    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
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    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
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    6 min read