Policy & Politics

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the legislation, guidance, policies and people involved in federal and state government
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
•
1 min read
States States Are Banning Book Bans. Will It Work?
Approved legislation aims to stop school libraries from removing books for partisan reasons.
Sarah Schwartz
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5 min read
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
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6 min read
Law & Courts School Sports Case Reaches the Supreme Court at a Fraught Time for Trans Rights
The justices will consider state laws that bar transgender girls from participating in female sports.
Mark Walsh
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8 min read
Fifteen year-old Becky Pepper-Jackson tosses a discus at home in West Virginia.
Fifteen-year-old Becky Pepper-Jackson tosses a discus at home in West Virginia. Her challenge to the state’s ban on transgender girls in school sports is now before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Scout Tufankjian/ACLU
Law & Courts Judge Bars Trump Admin. From Purging DEI Terms From Head Start Funding Requests
The federal judge also prohibited further layoffs of staff from the federal Office of Head Start.
The Associated Press
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2 min read
Students ride tricycles during aftercare at a Head Start program run by Easterseals, an organization that gets about a third of its funding from the federal government, Jan. 29, 2025, in Miami.
Students ride tricycles during aftercare at a Head Start program run by Easterseals, an organization that gets about a third of its funding from the federal government, Jan. 29, 2025, in Miami.
Rebecca Blackwell/AP
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
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4 min read
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 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
•
5 min read
The end of a bar chart made of pencils with a line graph drawn over it.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty + Education Week

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More Policy & Politics

  • AB Hernandez, center, claps with Kira Gant Hatcher, right, during a medal ceremony for the triple jump at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., on May 31, 2025.
    AB Hernandez, a transgender teen athlete, center, claps during a medal ceremony for the triple jump at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., on May 31, 2025. The U.S. Department of Education has found the state in violation of Title IX for its transgender athlete policy.
    Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP
    Federal California Violated Title IX Over Transgender Athletes, Ed. Dept. Concludes
    The U.S. Department of Education said the state's school sports policies for transgender athletes violated female students' rights.
    Jenny Jarvie, Los Angeles Times, June 25, 2025
    •
    2 min read
    The rainbow Pride flag flutters from the flag pole at the state Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., on June 17, 2019.
    The rainbow Pride flag flutters from the flag pole at the state Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., on June 17, 2019. The Trump administration has ordered California to remove all references to gender identity from a sex education curriculum or risk losing federal funds.
    Rich Pedroncelli/AP
    Federal Trump Admin. Orders California to Remove Gender Identity From Sex Ed Curriculum
    The state has 60 days to make the change or it risks losing federal funds.
    Brooke Schultz, June 24, 2025
    •
    4 min read
    Law, politics and eco balance concept. 3d rendering of scale icon on fresh spring meadow with blue sky in background.
    iStock/Getty
    Law & Courts School Restrooms, LGBTQ+ Curriculum, Disability Rights: A Spring Legal Roundup
    Courts weighed in this spring on transgender rights, disability access, and parent opt-outs.
    Mark Walsh, June 20, 2025
    •
    11 min read
    Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks alongside Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill during a press conference regarding the Ten Commandments in schools Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Baton Rouge, La. Murrill announced on Monday that she is filing a brief in federal court asking a judge to dismiss a lawsuit seeking to overturn the state’s new law requiring that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom.
    Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks alongside Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill during a press conference on a law requiring the Ten Commandments be displayed in schools on Aug. 5, 2024, in Baton Rouge, La. A federal appeals court on June 20 upheld an injunction blocking the law from taking effect.
    Hilary Scheinuk/The Advocate via AP
    Law & Courts Federal Appeals Court Upholds Block on Louisiana Ten Commandments Display Law
    Louisiana's law requiring the Ten Commandments in every classroom likely violates the First Amendment, a federal appeals court ruled.
    Mark Walsh, June 20, 2025
    •
    3 min read
    Jane Hodgdon, a former 25 year employee of the US Department of Education, stands for a portrait with her dog Maxine, while touring Shelby County Public Schools’ Magic School Bus summer program on Thursday, June 5, 2025 in Simpsonville, Kentucky.
    Jane Hodgdon stands with her dog Maxine while touring Shelby County Public Schools’ Magic School Bus summer program on Thursday, June 5, 2025 in Simpsonville, Ky. After an abrupt end to her 25-year career at the U.S. Department of Education, Hodgdon embarked on a road trip to visit schools and educators she had worked with during her time at the federal agency.
    Luke Sharrett for Education Week
    Federal An Ed. Dept. Staffer's 6,000-Mile Journey to Find Closure After Abrupt Job Loss
    Jane Hodgdon took to the road to visit schools she had worked with in her 25 years at the U.S. Department of Education.
    Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, June 20, 2025
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    7 min read
    Runners take off from the starting line for the 2A girls championship cross country race on Oct. 28, 2023, at the Norris Penrose Event Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.
    Runners take off from the starting line for the 2A girls championship cross-country race on Oct. 28, 2023, at the Norris Penrose Event Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. The Trump administration is proposing a change to a school athletics rule under Title IX, but doing it through the U.S. Department of Energy rather than the Department of Education.
    Parker Seibold/The Gazette via AP
    Federal The U.S. Department of Energy Is Trying to Change a Title IX Rule. Why?
    Proposals from the U.S. Department of Energy show buy-in from across the administration for the president's view of gender identity.
    Brooke Schultz, June 19, 2025
    •
    6 min read
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  • Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., Chair of the House Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education, speaks during a hearing on antisemitism in K-12 public schools, Wednesday, May 8, 2024, on Capitol Hill in Washington.
    Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., chair of the House Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education, speaks during a hearing on antisemitism in K-12 public schools on May 8, 2024, in Washington. At a hearing on Dec. 4, 2024, the subcommittee discussed civics and government curriculum.
    Jacquelyn Martin/AP
    Federal Republicans Preview Their Education Priorities in a Second Trump Term
    In a hearing, Republicans called for more civics education and expressed concerns over "critical race theory" in schools.
    Brooke Schultz, December 4, 2024
    •
    5 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 The Trump Administration Should 'Devolve the Ed Dept.'s Responsibilities to the States'
    After six years helming the House ed. committee, U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx cuts loose on high points and frustrations of her tenure.
    Rick Hess, December 3, 2024
    •
    8 min read
    A high school principal displays vaping devices that were confiscated from students in such places as restrooms or hallways at a school in Massachusetts on April 10, 2018.
    A high school principal in Massachusetts displays vaping devices that were confiscated from students in restrooms or hallways on April 10, 2018.
    Steven Senne/AP
    Law & Courts How a Supreme Court Case on Vaping Stands to Impact Schools
    The U.S. Supreme Court heard an important case about federal regulation of flavored e-cigarettes, which remain a concern for schools.
    Mark Walsh, December 2, 2024
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    6 min read
    Small Business Administration administrator Linda McMahon attends a cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on Aug. 16, 2018, in Washington.
    Linda McMahon attends a meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on Aug. 16, 2018, in Washington. McMahon, then head of the U.S. Small Business Administration, is President-elect Donald Trump's choice to lead the Education Department in his new administration.
    Andrew Harnik/AP
    Federal What's in the Lawsuit That Alleges Linda McMahon Failed to Protect Children
    The lawsuit filed by former World Wrestling Entertainment workers alleges a culture of acceptance of sexual misconduct.
    Mark Walsh, December 2, 2024
    •
    8 min read
    Image of a student desk sitting on top of a pile of books
    Collage via iStock/Getty
    Education Funding Trump's Plans Would Disrupt Funding for Schools. What Would It Look Like?
    School districts are bracing for a period of fiscal turbulence and whiplash that could strain their efforts to meet students’ complex needs.
    Mark Lieberman, November 27, 2024
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    12 min read
    Cafeteria workers serve student lunches at Firebaugh High School in Lynwood, Calif. on Wednesday, April 3, 2024. Demand for school lunches has increased after California guaranteed free meals to all students regardless of their family's income.
    Cafeteria workers serve lunches at Firebaugh High School in Lynwood, Calif., on Wednesday, April 3, 2024. Demand for school lunches has increased after California guaranteed free meals to all students regardless of their family's income. A federal school lunch provision that makes it easier for public schools to provide universal free meals may be a target for elimination in President-elect Donald Trump's upcoming term if some conservative activists and lawmakers get their way.
    Richard Vogel/AP
    Federal How Trump Could Roll Back Access to Free School Lunches
    Project 2025 and a GOP budget proposal call for axing a federal rule that allows public schools to serve free meals to all students.
    Evie Blad, November 26, 2024
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    5 min read
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