The following blog post presents important information from the online magazine The 74. Published by Mark Keierleber March 22, 2025.
The Education Department is Dead — or Is It?
The Education Department is Dead — or Is It?
There was a funeral at the White House on Thursday.
Well, kind of.
In an executive order, President Donald Trump demanded the 45-year-old Education Department be scaled back to its “critical functions,” a move that fell short of his years-long campaign promise to eliminate the federal agency outright. Such a move, the White House press secretary acknowledged Thursday, would require buy-in from Congress — far more than the stroke of the president’s pen.
Still, as my colleague Linda Jacobson writes, Trump’s order has opened questions about how the agency will continue to carry out some of its primary functions, including the enforcement of federal civil rights laws that protect students against discrimination and ensure equal opportunities to learn.
As Trump Moves to Shutter Education Dept., GOP Clamors for Funding Flexibility
In the news
A proposed Texas bill would ban “furry subculture” in public schools, prohibiting kids from acting like animals, including “barking, meowing, hissing or other animal noises that are not human speech.” | Newsweek
Reality check: The legislation, which also imposes a ban on litter boxes in schools, is based on a demeaning hoax. Period. | Education Week
Also in Texas, new legislation seeks to overturn recent discipline reforms that limit suspensions for students pre-K through second grade and for children experiencing homelessness. | The Texas Tribune
‘Severe sexual abuse’: The Justice Department will no longer pursue a civil rights lawsuit against Southwest Key Programs, a nonprofit that operated prison-like shelters for unaccompanied migrant children and whose employees faced sexual abuse allegations. | Reuters
The Trump administration said it would no longer send migrant children to Southwest Key facilities and accused the Biden administration of enabling the alleged abuse, while the nonprofit said it was pleased that “there is no settlement or payment required.” | The New York Times
The National Center for Youth Law, a nonprofit legal advocacy group, has sought to intervene in the case. The group said in a media release it is “outraged” by the Justice Department’s decision to drop the case and that the “allegations of severe sexual abuse, including the rape of children, demand immediate and decisive action.” | National Center for Youth Law
Mark your calendars: The American Federation of Teachers will team up with the parent group Stop Sexual Assault in Schools for a webinar March 25 titled “Addressing the Rise and Impact of Misogyny Among Students in Grades 6-12.” | Register here
An Idaho teacher is in a standoff with her school district — at the risk of losing her job — because she refused to remove a sign that reads “Everyone is welcome here.” | The 74
A Florida judge has scheduled a June trial date for former Broward County Schools Superintendent Robert Runcie, who was indicted on a single perjury charge, accused of lying to a statewide grand jury convened to investigate school safety operations after the 2018 Parkland school shooting. | South Florida Sun Sentinel
ICE chilling student speech: A Georgetown University graduate student in the U.S. on a student visa was detained by immigration enforcement officials and faces deportation on allegations of having “close connections to a known or suspected terrorist.” His wife is Palestinian-American, and his father-in-law was once an adviser to a Hamas leader who was assassinated by Israeli forces last year. A Homeland Security spokesperson accused the student of “actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media.” His lawyer denied the allegations. | BBC
A Columbia University student arrested and threatened with deportation for his role in pro-Palestine campus protests says his detention is indicative of “anti-Palestinian racism.” | The Associated Press
More on the immigration front: A 10-year-old girl — and U.S. citizen — recovering from brain cancer was removed from the country along with her undocumented parents, who were deported to Mexico. | NBC News
School gun violence has long been a topic of heated debate, especially as mass shootings surge. How might Education Secretary Linda McMahon approach the subject?
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