Category: Federal Government Actions

USDE Cancels NAEP (February 28, 2025)

Since the 1970s, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has monitored student performance in reading and math for students ages nine, 13 and 17. These assessments, known as The Nation’s Report Card, measure students’ educational progress over long periods to identify and monitor trends in academic performance. However, the NAEP, which was scheduled to be given this March through May, has been cancelled by the U.S. Department of Education USDE .

With the U.S. Department of Education’s (USDE) cancellation of the NAEP for 17-year-olds, education researchers are losing one resource for evaluating post-high school readiness, although some say the test was already a missed opportunity since it hadn’t been administered since 2012 due to the pandemic.

The USDE cited funding issues in its cancellation of the exam.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

USDE Launches EndDEI.Ed.Gov Portal for Reporting Discrimination (February 28, 2025)

On February 27, 2025 the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) opened an online submission tool to collect reports of discrimination based on race or sex in public K-12 schools. EndDEI.Ed.Gov is a public portal for parents, students, teachers and the general public to alert the agency of ”illegal discriminatory practices.” According to a statement on the portal’s website, the USDE “is committed to ensuring all students have access to meaningful learning free of divisive ideologies and indoctrination.” and people can provide an email address, the name of a school or school district, and details about concerning practices.

The information collection tool is part of the Trump administration’s effort to eliminate practices for diversity, equity and inclusion.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

$600M in USDE Cuts Target Teacher Training Grants (February 26, 2025)

A February 17, 2025 U.S. Department of Education (USDE) $600 million cut in “divisive” teacher training grants will do great harm to partnerships that support the teacher pipeline. Despite teacher shortages across the country, the cost-cutting measures led by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), will significantly hamper efforts to staff schools. Two of the most common federal grant programs impacted so far are the Teacher Quality Partnership Program and the Supporting Effective Educator Development Grant, targeting funds to institutions and nonprofits that were using training materials on topics such as critical race theory and diversity, equity and inclusion. The department added that “many of these grants included teacher and staff recruiting strategies implicitly and explicitly based on race.”

DOGE has reported this week that the USDE is leading among other federal agencies for the most savings in total funding cuts.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

Gov. Shapiro Provides Update: All Federal Funding Identified at the Filing of Lawsuit are Unfrozen (February 24, 2025)

Today, February 24, 2025, Governor Josh Shapiro announced that all $2.1 billion in Congressionally-appropriated federal funding owed to Pennsylvania identified at the time of filing his lawsuit against the Trump Administration has been unfrozen. As a result of the Governor’s lawsuit – and direct pressure on and engagement with the Trump Administration – federal funding is once again accessible to Pennsylvania state agencies.

See below for the Governor’s remarks as prepared for delivery:

Good afternoon.

Less than two weeks ago, my Office filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s illegal freeze of federal funding because of its direct impact on Pennsylvania state government and our work to serve the good people of our Commonwealth.

On the day we filed, at least $2.1 billion in federal funding that had been appropriated by Congress and obligated by the federal government to our state agencies was frozen or placed in an undefined review. 

That included funding to prevent sinkholes and make abandoned mines safe…

Funding to plug abandoned wells leaking toxic chemicals into our communities… 

…and funding to reduce energy costs for homeowners and ensure the water flowing to Pennsylvanians’ faucets is clean and pure. 

Today, I’m here to provide an update on where things stand. 

As a result of our lawsuit – and our continued pressure on and engagement with the Trump Administration… 

In which we demanded the Administration comply with the legal injunctions currently in place and made clear that we were ready to seek immediate relief from the courts…

…every dollar we identified at the filing of our lawsuit is currently unfrozen and once again accessible to Pennsylvania state agencies, in accordance with legal injunctions currently in place.

With the funding restored, we will now resume critical programs and infrastructure projects that have been jeopardized by this illegal freeze. 

There are some who questioned why we would sue the federal government in this matter.

As I said at the time, legal action was not my first choice – and in fact, after the funding freeze first went into effect in late January, we actively engaged with our Republican Congressional delegation, led by Senator McCormick, and the Trump Administration to get these funds unfrozen. 

We saw some progress, but despite those efforts – and multiple court orders to release the federal funding – billions of dollars owed to Pennsylvania remained tied up weeks later.

That’s why we sought and received delegation from the Office of Attorney General to represent my Office and affected state agencies in this litigation.

Look, you don’t need to be the former Attorney General – or even a lawyer – to get this.

This is basic stuff. Kids learn this in grade school. It’s how our Constitution works.

Congress passed laws that committed billions of dollars to the states for serious needs. The president signed those bills into law. 

Then, the federal government entered into agreements with state government agencies to get those dollars out into people’s communities.

Those agreements are binding.

To put it simply: a deal is a deal.

The Trump Administration is legally required to provide these funds.

That is why I took legal action.

But we can walk and chew gum at the same time. 

So even after we filed our lawsuit 11 days ago, my team and I continued to engage the Department of Justice and Trump Administration directly.

When I was at the White House on Friday, I repeatedly brought up our frozen federal funding to President Trump’s senior team and cabinet. 

I urged them to follow the law and honor their agreements with Pennsylvania. 

As a result of that direct engagement, our funding is unfrozen, they are now following the law, and we will continue to press our case.  

For now, thanks to this federal funding flowing to our agencies once again, we can resume important work for the good people of Pennsylvania without subjecting Pennsylvanians to the risk that the Commonwealth would receive a bill for work that should’ve been paid for by the federal government. 

Work that includes plugging orphaned and abandoned wells – and creating good-paying jobs in the process.

Work to clean up our waterways, help our farmers deal with runoff that leads into the Chesapeake Bay, and ensure Pennsylvanians have clean water when they turn on the tap.

Work to repair abandoned mines before they turn into sinkholes and endanger people’s homes and businesses so we can prevent another tragedy like what we saw in Westmoreland County in December.

Pennsylvania is home to more abandoned mines than any other state in the country – and we still have 140,000 acres that need to be fixed. 

We’re resuming work to reduce utility bills for consumers and make sure rural communities have reliable access to electricity.

As a result of the freeze, several ongoing projects in the western part of our Commonwealth – employing dozens of Pennsylvanians – had stopped work.

These folks can now get back on the job, knowing their Governor will continue to have their back. 

As Governor, it’s my job to protect Pennsylvania’s interests – and I will use every tool at my disposal, from legal action to my direct engagement to make sure Pennsylvanians are protected… 

…and the funds that Pennsylvanians rely on every day – the funds that Pennsylvanians pay in federal taxes…

…make their way back to our Commonwealth and we receive every federal dollar we’re owed.

Thank you.

U.S. Ed. Sec. Nominee Linda McMahon Moves Closer to Confirmation, Would Move Sp. Ed. to Another Agency (February 22, 2025)

On Thursday, February 20, 2025. Linda McMahon’s nomination for U.S. Secretary of Education advanced with the approval of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which voted 12-11 along party lines.

McMahon previously appeared before the committee February 13th for a 2 ½ hour confirmation hearing where she spoke of her priorities for expanding school choice and skills-based learning, providing more decision-making power to local schools and parents, and protecting students from discrimination and harassment. 

McMahon also talked about her openness to making sweeping changes at the U.S. Department of Education, including moving programs like special education oversight and civil rights investigations to other federal agencies. In fact, she said that special education could be housed in other agencies that do not oversee education matters, like the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, which will be led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

McMahon formerly served as administrator of the Small Business Administration for two years in President Donald Trump’s first administration. She was previously president and CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment. She has no degree in education and has never taught in a classroom.

A full Senate vote on McMahon’s confirmation is forthcoming.

Click here for a video of the February 13th hearing.

Source: Higher Ed. Dive