Policy & Politics

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the legislation, guidance, policies and people involved in federal and state government
Federal Trump Admin. Sues Minnesota Over Transgender Athletes in Girls' Sports
It's the third state the Trump administration has sued over transgender participation in athletics.
The Associated Press
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2 min read
Law & Courts Birthright Citizenship Case Raises Stakes for Schools and Undocumented Students
Educators are paying close attention to the case on Trump's birthright citizenship order.
Mark Walsh
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10 min read
States A State Gets Closer to Challenging Undocumented Students' Free Access to School
Lawmakers are debating legislation that would require schools to collect immigration information.
Ileana Najarro
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4 min read
Education Funding Trump Again Proposes Major Education Cuts in New Budget Proposal
The president again wants lawmakers to consider billions in K-12 spending cuts and program eliminations.
Mark Lieberman
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7 min read
The Senate and the Capitol Dome are illuminated in Washington, early Thursday, April 2, 2026, as Congress meets in a short, pro forma session.
The Senate and the Capitol dome are illuminated in Washington early in the day on Thursday, April 2, 2026. For the second year in a row, the White House budget proposes major cuts to federal education programs that the Republican-led Congress rejected last year.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Law & Courts Supreme Court Seems Poised to Reject Trump's Birthright Order
Trump’s attendance in the birthright citizenship case marked the first time a sitting president has done this.
The Associated Press
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6 min read
President Donald Trump leaves the Supreme Court, on April 1, 2026, in Washington.
President Donald Trump leaves the Supreme Court on April 1, 2026, in Washington. The justices signaled skepticism of Trump’s bid to restrict birthright citizenship.
Anthony Peltier/AP
Federal Tracker See Which Ed. Dept. Programs Are Moving to New Agencies: A Tracker
K-12 and higher education programs are heading to new agencies as part of Trump administration downsizing.
Mark Lieberman
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1 min read
Photo collaged image of the U.S. Department of Education shattering.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + AP + Getty
Federal Meet the Trump Cabinet Secretaries Taking Over Ed. Dept. Programs
The U.S. Department of Education is shifting more than 100 programs to other federal agencies.
Mark Lieberman
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1 min read
President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, on March 26, 2026, in Washington.
President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, on March 26, 2026, in Washington. Six Cabinet members are now on track to have a hand in managing U.S. Department of Education programs.
Alex Brandon/AP

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More Policy & Politics

  • Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill speaks during a press conference on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Baton Rouge, La. Murrill teamed up with the Trump administration to ask a judge to end a decades-old desegregation order under which the state's DeSoto Parish Schools were under federal oversight.
    Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill speaks during a press conference on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Baton Rouge, La. Murrill teamed up with the Trump administration to ask a judge to end a decades-old desegregation order under which the state's DeSoto Parish Schools were under federal oversight.
    Hilary Scheinuk/The Advocate via AP
    Law & Courts Judge Ends School Desegregation Order at Trump Administration's Request
    The decision ends decades of federal oversight to ensure schools' compliance with the order to desegregate.
    Patrick Wall, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate, January 7, 2026
    •
    4 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
    Policy & Politics Opinion Who Are the Nation's Top Education Scholars?
    The RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings recognize researchers who shape practice and policy.
    Rick Hess, January 7, 2026
    •
    2 min read
    Students carrying pride flags and transgender flags leave Great Oak High School on Sept. 22, 2023, in Temecula, Calif., after walking out of the school in protest of the Temecula school district policy requiring parents to be notified if their child identifies as transgender.
    Students carrying pride flags and transgender flags leave Great Oak High School on Sept. 22, 2023, in Temecula, Calif., after walking out of the school in protest of the Temecula school district policy requiring parents to be notified if their child identifies as transgender. But many districts in California follow a state policy limiting when schools can inform parents about a student's gender identity without the student's consent.
    Anjali Sharif-Paul/The Orange County Register via AP
    Law & Courts Appeals Court Blocks Ruling Bolstering Parental Rights Over Gender Identity
    A federal appeals court blocked a groundbreaking ruling over the disclosure of students' gender identities.
    Mark Walsh, January 6, 2026
    •
    4 min read
    Stephon Thompson, an administrator at Stevenson Elementary School, directs students through the doors at the beginning of the school day in Southfield, Mich., on Feb. 28, 2024.
    Stephon Thompson directs students through the doors at the beginning of the school day at Stevenson Elementary School in Southfield, Mich., on Feb. 28, 2024. The school has added on-site social services in recent years as a community school. The Trump administration has recently discontinued 19 federal grants that help schools become local service hubs for students and their families.
    Samuel Trotter for Education Week
    Education Funding Educator Layoffs Loom as Canceled Community Schools Grants Remain in Limbo
    Three legal challenges and bipartisan backlash have followed the Trump administration's funding cuts.
    Mark Lieberman, January 6, 2026
    •
    5 min read
    Illustration in blue of huge hands holding money as silhouette people run towards it.
    iStock/Getty
    Education Funding Video School Funding: The 3 Big Questions to Watch in 2026
    2025 was a disruptive year for school funding, here's what we're anticipating in the year ahead.
    Mark Lieberman & Yi-Jo Shen, January 6, 2026
    •
    2:13
    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
    Policy & Politics Opinion The 2026 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Scoring Formula
    Rick Hess unveils the 2026 RHSU Edu-Scholar rankings tomorrow. Here's his methodology.
    Rick Hess, January 6, 2026
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    8 min read
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School & District Management Quiz Meet the Big 4: Test Your Knowledge of K-12’s Power Players
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IT Infrastructure & Management Sponsor Calculating the True Total Cost of Ownership: ViewSonic Manager Saves Time and Money
When schools evaluate interactive displays, it’s smart to focus on specs like advanced security features, input options, annotation tools...
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IT Infrastructure & Management Sponsor Day in the Life: How EDLA Seamlessly Integrates into a Teacher's Google Workspace 
The school day hasn’t officially begun, but Ms. Ramirez is already in her classroom, energized and focused. She is most excited to ...
Content provided by ViewSonic
Reading & Literacy Quiz Quiz Yourself: How Much Do You Know About Supporting Literacy Initiatives?
Answer 7 questions about supporting literacy initiatives.
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  • A sign reading "Protect Neighbors" is posted near a bus stop as a school bus passes on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis.
    A sign reading "Protect Neighbors" is posted near a bus stop in Minneapolis on Jan. 30, 2026. A lawsuit from two Minnesota school districts and the state's teachers' union says immigration agents have detained people and staged enforcement actions at or near schools, school bus stops, and daycare centers.
    Kerem Yücel /Minnesota Public Radio via AP
    Law & Courts Educators Sue Over ICE Activity on School Grounds and Nearby
    The challenge targets the Trump administration's revocation of a policy that limited immigration enforcement at schools.
    Alyson Klein, February 4, 2026
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    5 min read
    Commuters walk past the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Eduction, which were ordered closed for the day for what officials described as security reasons amid large-scale layoffs, on March 12, 2025, in Washington.
    The U.S. Department of Education spent up to $38 million last year to pay civil rights staffers who remained on administrative leave while the agency tried to lay them off.
    Mark Schiefelbein/AP
    Federal Ed. Dept. Paid Civil Rights Staffers Up to $38 Million as It Tried to Lay Them Off
    A report from Congress' watchdog looks into the Trump Admin.'s efforts to downsize the Education Department.
    Alyson Klein, February 3, 2026
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    5 min read
    20260203 AMX US NEWS COULD TEXAS SCHOOL VOUCHER PROGRAM 1 DA
    Enrollment in private school choice programs has grown quickly around the country in recent years. Applications open this month for Texas' newly created private school choice program, the largest such program in the country. Private "microschools"—such as the Humanist Academy in Irving, Texas, shown on Jan. 8, 2026—could benefit.
    Juan Figueroa/ The Dallas Morning News via Tribune Content Agency
    School Choice & Charters Where Private School Choice Enrollment—and Spending—Is Surging
    States have devoted billions of dollars recently in public funds families can use on private schooling.
    Mark Lieberman, February 3, 2026
    •
    13 min read
    Congress Shutdown 26034657431919
    Congress has passed a budget that rejects the Trump administration’s proposals to slash billions of dollars from federal education investments, ending a partial government shutdown. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and fellow House Republican leaders speak ahead of a key budget vote on Feb. 3, 2026.
    AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
    Education Funding Congress Has Passed an Education Budget. See How Key Programs Are Affected
    Federal funding for low-income students and special education will remain level year over year.
    Mark Lieberman, February 3, 2026
    •
    2 min read
    Photo collage of 3 photos. Clockwise from left: Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, tosses a ball with other classmates underneath a play structure during recess at Parkside Elementary School on May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea Rasmussen has fought for more than a year for her daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside. A proposed ban on transgender athletes playing female school sports in Utah would affect transgender girls like this 12-year-old swimmer seen at a pool in Utah on Feb. 22, 2021. A Morris-Union Jointure Commission student is seen playing a racing game in the e-sports lab at Morris-Union Jointure Commission in Warren, N.J., on Jan. 15, 2025.
    Federal education grant terminations and disruptions during the Trump administration's first year touched programs training teachers, expanding social services in schools, bolstering school mental health services, and more. Affected grants were spread across more than a dozen federal agencies.
    Clockwise from left: Lindsey Wasson; Michelle Gustafson for Education Week
    Education Funding Trump Slashed Billions for Education in 2025. See Our List of Affected Grants
    We've tabulated the grant programs that have had awards terminated over the past year. See our list.
    Mark Lieberman, January 27, 2026
    •
    8 min read
    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
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    1 min read
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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.
Alexandria Ng
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8 min read
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.
Scott Elliott
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