Policy & Politics

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the legislation, guidance, policies and people involved in federal and state government
Federal Trump Admin. Terminates Several Agreements to Protect Transgender Students
The Education Department terminated civil rights agreements under Title IX with five school districts and a college.
1 min read
Federal Moms for Liberty Wanted School Board Seats. They Got a Voice in the White House
Moms for Liberty is being embraced by the Trump administration and gaining new influence in national decisions.
6 min read
States 'Success Sequence' Urges Marriage, Then Parenthood. These States Want Schools to Teach It
The decades-old concept is getting new attention, largely from Republican lawmakers.
6 min read
Law & Courts Minn. Districts Ask Judge to Restore Immigration Enforcement Limits by Schools
Two districts say the policy change hurt attendance and cost them students.
3 min read
Fridley Superintendent Brenda Lewis speaks during a news conference in February at the Minnesota State Capitol.
Superintendent Brenda Lewis of the Fridley, Minn., school district speaks during a news conference in February 2026 at the Minnesota State Capitol. The Fridley district is one of two Minnesota school districts suing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in an effort to restore restrictions on immigration enforcement in and near schools.
Carlos Gonzalez/Minnesota Star Tribune via TNS
States Texas' Bible-Infused Reading List Gets an Earful at Public Hearing
The proposal to add Bible stories reflects increasing debate over religion in public school classrooms.
4 min read
Three bibles sit on a couch on Nov. 24, 2025, in Brooklyn, New York.
Three bibles sit on a couch on Nov. 24, 2025, in Brooklyn, New York. A selection of Bible stories could be part of a K-12 reading list being debated in Texas.
David Crary/AP
Education Funding Trump's Budget Proposes Billions in K-12 Cuts. Will They Happen?
Trump is proposing level funding for Title I, a modest boost for special education, and major cuts elsewhere.
6 min read
A third-grade teacher at the Mountain View Elementary School's Global Immersion Academy in Morganton, N.C. works with her students in the Spanish portion of the program. With the inaugural class of the Global Immersion Academy (GIA) at at the school entering fourth grade this year, Burke County Public Schools is seeing more signs of success for its dual language program.
A teacher in a North Carolina dual-language program works with her students. In his latest budget proposal, President Donald Trump once again proposes to eliminate the $890 million fund that pays for supplemental services for English learners. Schools can use Title III funds for costs tied to dual-language programs that educate English learners.
Jason Koon/The News-Herald via AP
School Choice & Charters Opinion Can School Choice Programs Stamp Out Fraud While Staying Flexible?
With the rollout of the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit program, transparency is vital.
7 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

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More Policy & Politics

  • North Dakota Superintendent of Public Instruction Kirsten Baesler announces the gathering of a task force to look into future options the state has for the assessment of students during a press conference May 8, 2015, at the state Capitol in Bismarck, N.D.
    North Dakota Superintendent of Public Instruction Kirsten Baesler speaks at a press conference on May 8, 2015, at the state capitol in Bismarck, N.D. Baesler will serve as assistant secretary of elementary and secondary education after her Tuesday confirmation by the U.S. Senate.
    Mike McCleary/The Bismarck Tribune via AP
    Federal Senate Confirms Longtime North Dakota Schools Chief for Top Ed. Dept. Role
    Senators approved a batch of Trump nominees that also included others to top Education Department posts.
    Brooke Schultz, October 7, 2025
    3 min read
    Jackson County High School in Kentucky posts the Ten Commandments in the front hall of the school, shown here in 2000, and in every classroom, on June 25, 2025. A group of North Texas reverends filed a federal lawsuit this week to challenge a new state law that would require posting the Ten Commandments in each public school classroom.
    The Ten Commandments were seen on display at Jackson County High School in Kentucky in 2000. The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, in New Orleans, will review a Louisiana law that requires the display of the commandments in public school classrooms.
    <a href="https://www.gettyimages.com/search/2/image?artistexact=Lexington%20Herald-Leader">Lexington Herald-Leader</a>/Getty Images
    Law & Courts Louisiana's Ten Commandments Law Gets Full Federal Appeals Court Review
    The full 5th Circuit threw out a panel decision that blocked a Louisiana law requiring Ten Commandments displays in schools.
    Mark Walsh, October 7, 2025
    2 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
    School Choice & Charters Opinion What Could the New Federal Tuition Tax Credit Mean for School Choice?
    Just what this new program will mean for your state is still uncertain.
    Rick Hess, October 7, 2025
    7 min read
    Screenshot of a portion of a response email blaming Democrat Senators for the government shutdown.
    Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty
    Law & Courts Ed. Dept. Workers' Union Sues Over Emails Blaming Democrats for Shutdown
    The lawsuit challenges an automatic email from furloughed staff that blames U.S. Senate Democrats for the government shutdown.
    Brooke Schultz, October 6, 2025
    3 min read
    School entrance with a flag in background.
    iStock/Getty
    Federal How the Federal Government Shutdown Is Affecting Schools: A Tracker
    Education Week monitored how the federal government's shutdown affected schools and other education functions.
    Mark Lieberman, October 3, 2025
    1 min read
    AB Hernandez, a transgender student at Jurupa Valley High School, competes in the high jump at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., May 31, 2025.
    AB Hernandez, a transgender female student at Jurupa Valley High School, competes in the high jump at the California high school track and field championships in Clovis, Calif., on May 31. The U.S. Supreme Court in its new term will consider state laws that prohibit transgender girls and women from competing in female athletics.
    Jae C. Hong/AP
    Law & Courts New Supreme Court Term Puts Transgender Student Rights in the Spotlight
    The justices will weigh state laws that bar transgender girls from female athletics, amid other issues of interest to educators in new term
    Mark Walsh, October 2, 2025
    8 min read

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  • Federal Quiz Quiz Yourself: How Polarized Do You Think Educators Are?
    The EdWeek Research Center examined the degree to which K-12 educators are split along partisan lines. Quiz yourself and see the results.
    Elle Butler, January 27, 2026
    1 min read
    The US Capitol is seen on Jan. 22, 2026, in Washington. Another federal shutdown that could impact education looms and could begin as soon as this weekend.
    The U.S. Capitol is seen on Jan. 22, 2026, in Washington. Another federal shutdown that could affect education looms if senators don't pass a funding bill by this weekend.
    Mariam Zuhaib/AP
    Federal Could Another Federal Shutdown Affect Education? What We Know
    After federal agents shot a Minneapolis man on Saturday, Democrats are now pulling support for a spending bill due by Friday.
    Mark Lieberman, January 26, 2026
    5 min read
    Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee speaks during a news conference Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn.. Lee presented the Education Freedom Scholarship Act of 2024, his administration's legislative proposal to establish statewide universal school choice.
    Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee speaks in favor of establishing a statewide, universal private school choice program on Nov. 28, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. Tennessee lawmakers passed that proposal, and Lee is also opting Tennessee into the first federal tax-credit scholarship program that will make publicly funded private school scholarships available to families. Tennessee is one of 21 participating states and counting.
    George Walker IV/AP
    School Choice & Charters Federal Program Will Bring Private School Choice to At Least 4 New States
    More state decisions on opting into the first federal private school choice program are rolling in.
    Matthew Stone, January 26, 2026
    6 min read
    Students sit on bleachers after science, technology, engineering and mathematics activities, facilitated by the Kentucky Science Center, in Simpsonville Elementary School, Nov. 18, 2025, in Simpsonville, Ky.
    Students sit on bleachers after STEM activities facilitated by the Kentucky Science Center at Simpsonville Elementary School in Simpsonville, Ky., on Nov. 18, 2025. The school district serving Simpsonville is one of nine in north-central Kentucky that was able to hire new school counselors with the help of a federal grant that the Trump administration terminated last year.
    Jon Cherry/AP
    Law & Courts The Stark Divide in the States Recouping K-12 Grants Cut by Trump's Ed. Dept.
    A fifth of lawsuits challenging Trump admin. education policies have come from multistate coalitions.
    Matthew Stone, January 22, 2026
    8 min read
    Ten Commandments Texas 25322117067170
    A Ten Commandments poster is seen with boxes of others before they were delivered to local public schools in New Braunfels, Texas, on Monday, Nov. 17, 2025. A federal appeals court appears open to reviving blocked Ten Commandments school laws in Louisiana and Texas.
    AP Photo/Eric Gay
    Law & Courts Full Appeals Court Signals Openness to Ten Commandments Classroom Laws
    The full 5th Circuit seemed sympathetic to unblocking two laws requiring Ten Commandments displays.
    Mark Walsh, January 21, 2026
    5 min read
    Photo collage of U.S. Capitol building and currency.
    iStock
    Education Funding Rebuking Trump, Congress Moves to Maintain Most Federal Education Funding
    Funding for key programs like Title I and IDEA are on track to remain level year over year.
    Mark Lieberman, January 20, 2026
    8 min read

EdWeek Market Brief

Strategy & Operations Market Analysis When to Bring in a Consultant — and How to Make it Pay Off
Industry advisors and business officials discuss the factors that contribute to a successful engagement.
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Meeting District Needs K-12 Insider What Made a Middle School's First-Ever ELA Curriculum Launch a Success
The process that Principal Anne Heck led in Lake Geneva Middle School offers one vision for how professional development and procurement can pair to improve student learning.
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Education Market Exclusive Data Vendors Are Pairing Assessment And Curriculum. Is That What K-12 Officials Want?
New EdWeek Market Brief data explores the ideal number of companies that district and school leaders say they want to work with, and whether they're open to a single provider for both curriculum and assessment products.
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Regulation & Policy K-12 Market News EdMarket Recap: Feds Move to Rewrite Grant Rules; States Pitch Funding Changes
EdWeek Market Brief staff writers dissect significant news of the week and identify the most important takeaways for companies serving K-12 districts.
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