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
•
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
•
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
•
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
•
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
•
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
•
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
•
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

Events

Thu., April 09, 2026, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. ET
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Artificial Intelligence Webinar Managing AI in Schools: Practical Strategies for Districts
How should districts govern AI in schools? Learn practical strategies for policies, safety, transparency, as well as responsible adoption.
Content provided by Lightspeed Systems
Register
Wed., April 29, 2026, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. ET
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar Unlocking Success for Struggling Adolescent Readers
The Science of Reading transformed K-3 literacy. Now it's time to extend that focus to students in grades 6 through 12.
Content provided by STARI
Register
Thu., May 14, 2026, 3:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. ET
Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and K-12 education jubs at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Register
See More Events

More Policy & Politics

  • Teacher’s aide Amelia Mester, wrapped in a Pride flag, urges Escondido Union High School District not to have employees notify parents if they believe a student may be transgender in November 2025. A policy on the issue in the city’s elementary school district is the subject of a federal class-action lawsuit in which a judge just sided against the district.
    Teacher’s aide Amelia Mester, wrapped in a Pride flag, urges Escondido Union High School District not to have employees notify parents if they believe a student may be transgender. A policy on the issue in the city’s elementary school district is the subject of a federal class-action lawsuit in which a judge just ruled against the district.
    Charlie Neuman for The San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS
    Law & Courts Schools Can’t Bar Teachers From Telling Parents If Kids Are Transgender, Judge Rules
    The injunction bans any public school employee from misleading parents about their child’s gender presentation at school.
    Kristen Taketa, The San Diego Union-Tribune, December 24, 2025
    •
    5 min read
    Photo of stone columns.
    E+
    Law & Courts Federal Appeals Court Upholds 8th Grader's Expulsion Over Gun Comments in Class
    Shortly after a nearby mass school shooting, a student allegedly discussed bringing a gun to school.
    Mark Walsh, December 22, 2025
    •
    3 min read
    President Donald Trump holds up an executive order after signing it at an indoor Presidential Inauguration parade event in Washington, Jan. 20, 2025.
    President Donald Trump holds up an executive order after signing it at an indoor presidential inauguration parade event in Washington on Jan. 20, 2025. Trump's executive actions prompted legal challenges virtually from the moment he took office, and education-related policies were not immune.
    Matt Rourke/AP
    Law & Courts Trump's Education Policies Spurred 72 Lawsuits in 2025. How Many Is He Winning?
    The legal challenges show which policies have had a big impact and how 2026 could go.
    Matthew Stone, December 22, 2025
    •
    5 min read
    Photo illustration of legal books, scales and gavel.
    iStock
    Law & Courts From Ten Commandments to Tariffs: A Fall Legal Roundup
    Key court cases on transgender rights, religion, speech, and policy could reshape U.S. schools.
    Mark Walsh, December 22, 2025
    •
    7 min read
    Genesis Olivio and her daughter Arlette, 2, read a book together in a room within the community hub at John H. Amesse Elementary School on March 13, 2024 in Denver. Denver Public Schools has six community hubs across the district that have serviced 3,000 new students since October 2023. Each community hub has different resources for families and students catering to what the community needs.
    Genesis Olivio and daughter Arlette, 2, read a book in one of Denver Public Schools' community hubs in March 2024. The community hubs, which offer food pantries, GED classes, and other services, are similar to what schools across the country have developed with the help of federal Community Schools grants, many of which the U.S. Department of Education has prematurely terminated.
    Rebecca Slezak For Education Week
    Education Funding 'A Gut Punch’: What Trump’s New $168 Million Cut Means for Community Schools
    School districts in 11 states will imminently lose federal funds that help them cover staff salaries.
    Mark Lieberman, December 18, 2025
    •
    10 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 Rick Hess' Top 10 Hits of 2025
    In a year full of education news, what cut through the noise?
    Rick Hess, December 18, 2025
    •
    2 min read
    Load More ▼

Resources

Student Well-Being & Movement Spotlight Spotlight on Creating Safe Havens: Confronting Digital Threats and Supporting Student Well-Being
This Spotlight explores how creating safe havens and confronting digital threats supports student and staff well-being.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Artificial Intelligence Sponsor Assessing Students When AI Has All the Answers
How can we ensure students are truly learning and expressing their own understanding, not just outsourcing their thinking to AI?
Content provided by ViewSonic
Special Education Spotlight Spotlight on Unlocking Potential: Building Resilience and Support for Students with Dyslexia
This Spotlight examines dyslexia, the need for social-emotional support, the value of early screening, and the key role teachers and schools play.
Artificial Intelligence Spotlight Spotlight on AI in Education: Save Time, Scale Programs, and Prioritize The Human Connection
This Spotlight will explore how AI is helping educators save time, scale programs, and refocus on what matters most—students.
Load More ▼
  • Students in Chad Wright’s construction program work on measurements at the Regional Occupational Center on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in Bakersfield, Calif.
    Students in Chad Wright’s construction program work on measurements at the Regional Occupational Center on Jan. 11, 2023, in Bakersfield, Calif. A newly released policy agenda from a coalition of center-left Democrats focuses heavily on career training.
    Morgan Lieberman for Education Week
    Federal A Major Democratic Group Thinks This Education Policy Is a Winning Issue
    An agenda from center-left Democrats could foreshadow how they discuss education on the campaign trail.
    Alyson Klein, January 9, 2026
    •
    4 min read
    The end of a bar chart made of pencils with a line graph drawn over it.
    DigitalVision Vectors/Getty + Education Week
    Federal Opinion The Federal Government Hasn’t Been Meeting Our Need for Unbiased Ed. Research
    Trump’s attacks on data collection are misguided—but that doesn’t mean it was working before.
    Rick Hess, January 8, 2026
    •
    5 min read
    The Instagram logo is seen on a cell phone, Oct. 14, 2022, in Boston.
    The Instagram logo is seen on a cell phone. New York is the third state, after California and Minnesota, to pass a law requiring social media warning labels.
    Michael Dwyer/AP
    States Scroll With Caution: Another State Requires Social Media Warning Labels
    Backers of New York's law, including Gov. Kathy Hochul, have likened tech's addictiveness to tobacco.
    Jennifer Vilcarino, January 8, 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 Tops Their Field in the 2026 RHSU Edu-Scholar Rankings?
    A scholar's rank within a discipline may be more telling than their place in the overall rankings.
    Rick Hess, January 8, 2026
    •
    1 min read
    Amanda Darrow, director of youth, family and education programs at the Utah Pride Center, poses with books that have been the subject of complaints from parents in Salt Lake City on Dec. 16, 2021. The wave of attempted book banning and restrictions continues to intensify, the American Library Association reported Friday. Numbers for 2022 already approach last year's totals, which were the highest in decades.
    Eight states have passed legislation restricting school officials from pulling books out of school libraries for partisan or ideological reasons. In the past five years, many such challenges have focused on books about race or LGBTQ+ people. Amanda Darrow, the director of youth, family and education programs at the Utah Pride Center, poses with books that have been the subject of complaints from parents in Salt Lake City on Dec. 16, 2021. (Utah is not one of the eight states.)
    Rick Bowmer/AP
    States States Are Banning Book Bans. Will It Work?
    Approved legislation aims to stop school libraries from removing books for partisan reasons.
    Sarah Schwartz, January 7, 2026
    •
    5 min read
    U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon is interviewed by Indiana’s Secretary of Education Katie Jenner during the 2025 Reagan Institute Summit on Education in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 18, 2025.
    U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, pictured here in Washington on Sept. 18, 2025, has granted Iowa a partial waiver from provisions of the Every Student Succeeds Act, saying the move is a step toward the Trump administration's goal of "returning education to the states." The waiver allows Iowa some additional flexibility in how it spends the limited portion of federal education funds used by the state department of education.
    Leah Millis for Education Week
    States McMahon Touts Funding Flexibility for Iowa That Falls Short of Trump Admin. Goal
    The Ed. Dept. is allowing the state education agency to consolidate small sets of funds from four grants.
    Mark Lieberman, January 7, 2026
    •
    6 min read
    Load More ▼

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
•
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.
Emma Kate Fittes
•
10 min read
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.
Emma Kate Fittes
•
8 min read
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
•
3 min read
Read More