Policy & Politics

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the legislation, guidance, policies and people involved in federal and state government
Federal Ed. Dept. Moves to Shutter Its Office for English Learners
Officials plan to move all federal English-learner programs and duties out of a standalone office.
Ileana Najarro
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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.
The Associated Press
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3 min read
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.
The Associated Press
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4 min read
States 'Not Our Job': Principals Decry a Proposal to Track Student Immigration Status
A principals group has publicly opposed efforts to require schools to track immigration status.
Ileana Najarro
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5 min read
Democratic Senator Raumesh Akbari hugs a young demonstrator as people gather to protest an immigration bill outside the Senate chamber at the state Capitol Thursday, in Nashville, Tenn. The bill would allow public school systems in Tennessee to require K-12 students without legal status in the country to pay tuition or face denial of enrollment, which is a challenge to the federal law requiring all children be provided a free public education regardless of legal immigration status.
Democratic state Sen. Raumesh Akbari hugs a young demonstrator as people protest an immigration bill outside the Senate chamber at the state Capitol on April 10, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. The legislation is part of a broader push in Tennessee to require schools to collect students’ immigration status, raising concerns among educators about trust, access, and compliance with federal law.
John Amis/AP
States A State With a Short School Year Wants to Stop the 'Bleeding' of Classroom Time
A new order aims to discourage districts from reducing instructional hours to fill budget gaps.
Mark Walsh
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4 min read
A teacher and rising kindergarten students at Vose Elementary in Beaverton during story time on April 16, 2026. Gov. Tina Kotek asked the State Board of Education on Thursday to prohibit school districts from using student-contact days as furlough days to balance budgets, in order to preserve instructional time.
Story time in a kindergarten class at Vose Elementary School in Beaverton, Ore., on April 16, 2026. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has issued an executive order in hopes of blocking any further erosion of instructional time in a state that has one of the shortest school years in the country.
Mark Graves/The Oregonian via TNS
Law & Courts Opinion Why the Supreme Court’s Ruling on Conversion Therapy Matters for Schools
A recent case puts religiously motivated speech ahead of the well-being of LGBTQ+ youth.
Jonathon E. Sawyer
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5 min read
lgbtq student backpack with rainbow spectrum flag on stairs isolated
Education Week + iStock/Getty
States The K-12 Issues That Top Governors' Agendas
Governors' priorities include early literacy, career education, and teacher recruitment.
Evie Blad
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7 min read
MVCS 5100
A classroom is bathed in light in Colorado Springs, Colo., Feb. 12, 2026.
Kevin Mohatt for Education Week

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Congress passed the budget, but uncertainty remains. Experts explain what districts should expect from federal education policy next.
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More Policy & Politics

  • 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
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    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
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    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
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    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
    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
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    5 min read
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Resources

Student Well-Being & Movement Spotlight Spotlight on The Science of Self-Regulation: The Missing Foundation of Academic Success
This Spotlight focuses on ways to build students’ self-management skills, a foundational predictor of academic success.
Reading & Literacy Quiz Quiz Yourself: Is Your Literacy Plan on Track?
Where does your literacy strategy and goals stand? Is it going well, or does it need a little retooling?
Professional Development Spotlight Spotlight on Effective Professional Development: Teacher Voice, Collaboration, and Sustainable Change
This Spotlight examines how successful PD is increasingly driven by teacher leadership, collaboration, and intentional district design.
Reading & Literacy Quiz Quiz Yourself: Is Your District Truly Science of Reading Aligned?
Answer questions on the science of reading alignment in your district, including classroom materials, achievement data, and regulations.
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  • 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
    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.
    Mark Lieberman, April 7, 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
    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.
    Rick Hess, April 7, 2026
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    7 min read
    AB Hernandez, a transgender student at Jurupa Valley High School, packs up her belongings under a canopy as athletes compete in the boys 4x800 meter relay at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., Saturday, May 31, 2025.
    AB Hernandez, a transgender student at Jurupa Valley High School, packs up her belongings under a canopy as athletes compete at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., on May 31, 2025. The Trump administration said Monday it has terminated agreements previous administrations reached with five school districts and a college aimed to uphold rights and protections for transgender students.
    Jae C. Hong/AP
    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.
    The Associated Press, April 6, 2026
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    1 min read
    Tina Descovich poses for a portrait Monday, March 23, 2026, in Washington.
    Tina Descovich poses for a portrait Monday, March 23, 2026, in Washington. The co-founder of Moms for Liberty estimates she's been to the White House a dozen times since the start of the second Trump administration, which has leaned in to many of the culture war battles the organization started fighting at the school board level five years ago.
    Allison Robbert/AP
    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.
    The Associated Press, April 6, 2026
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    6 min read
    Illustration of a child with a backpack looking at game pieces and board from THE GAME OF LIFE.
    Laura Baker/Education Week + iStock
    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.
    Evie Blad, April 3, 2026
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    6 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
    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, April 3, 2026
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    7 min read
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EdWeek Market Brief

Strategy & Operations Special Report State of the Industry 2026: Turning a Corner on Chaos to Find Stability and Growth
A new EdWeek Market Brief special report uncovers the worsening financial conditions many education companies are finding themselves in, while also finding growing levels of optimism for future sales.
Michelle Caffrey
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2 min read
Meeting District Needs K-12 Insider What K-12 Companies Should Know About District School Closure Efforts
Economic and population trends suggest districts may face school closures soon. Here's what a former superintendent says education companies should know about the difficult process.
Emma Kate Fittes
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9 min read
Education Market Tracker Curriculum Adoption Cycles: Which States Are Building Approved Lists?
A state-by-state look at which curriculum adoption cycles are up next, and which subjects will be up for review and approvals, tracked by EdWeek Market Brief
Emma Kate Fittes & Maya Riser-Kositsky
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2 min read
Product Development K-12 Market News ‘Don’t Outsource the Magic’: K-12 Industry Leaders Push for Human-Centered AI
Top executives at longtime education organizations discussed how they’re balancing at-scale reliability with cutting-edge transformation at ASU+GSV.

Alexandria Ng
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3 min read
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