This week, IEN rounds up a wave of articles over the past 2 months about the effects of the policy changes in the first year of the current US administration. Firings, slashed budgets, lawsuits, immigration raids dominate the headlines. Despite the challenges, Congress just passed a 2026 budget that rejected the administration’s proposals to cut billions of dollars in education funding. For recent related posts see AI, Cellphones, Literacy, Students’ Mental Health, Political Turmoil and More: Scanning the Headlines for the Top Education Stories for 2025and Reform, Resistance, and More Turbulence? Scanning the Headlines for Predictions for Education in 2026
President Trump’s First Year: Education in America, U.S. Department of Education
8 takeaways from the first year of this Trump administration, EducationNC
‘“In one year, the Trump Administration has ended business as usual in education,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon in a press release issued on the anniversary. “As we enter year two: buckle up, because our foot is on the gas.”’
What’s the Trump administration’s theory of action for improving schools? ChalkBeat
Trump 2.0: A sea change for K-12, K-12 Dive
Education has seen unprecedented changes in Trump’s second term, WPR
Brown Center scholars reflect on education after 1 year of the Trump administration, Brookings
“Within the first two weeks of his second term, President Trump issued three executive orders ending diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives across the government and in schools. Over the last year, the Trump administration has followed through by canceling federal research projects, withholding funds, and strong-arming universities into compliance. Yet, the administration’s actions on diversity, equity, and inclusion do not overturn the wealth of empirical evidence supporting it.“
11 numbers that capture the Trump effect on education, Hechinger Report
From head start to civil rights, 8 ways Trump reshaped education in just 1 Year, The74
See all the lawsuits Filed Over Trump’s Education Policies, Education Week
Funding cuts & other disruptions
The Education Department’s efforts to fire staff cost over $28 million, watchdog says (NPR)
In Trump’s First Year, at Least $12 Billion in School Funding Disruptions, EducationWeek
Trump Slashed Billions for Education in 2025: See a List of Affected Grants, EducationWeek
Investigations and a Billion-Dollar ‘Shakedown’: How Trump Targeted Higher Education, The New York Times
See Which Schools Trump’s Education Department Is Investigating and Why, Education Week
What Trump’s $100,000 Visa Fee Could Mean for Schools, EducationWeek
Trump administration drops appeal in D.E.I. schools lawsuit, New York Times
Education Department doubles down on anti-DEI efforts, K-12 Dive
“The agency said it would continue to target DEI programs “with or without” a policy letter that set its interpretation of Title VI but was blocked in court.”
Expanded Private School Choice
Federal Program Will Bring Private School Choice to At Least 4 New States, EducationWeek
Federal Private School Choice: Which States Are Opting In? EducationWeek
Trump administration pushes for school choice expansion amid declining test scores, ABC3340
What you need to know about private school choice, K-12 Dive
As School Choice Goes Universal, What New Research Is Showing, EducationWeek
“The number of students using public funds to enroll in private school or pay for home-school expenses has been growing rapidly following a wave of state policies that have launched new private school choice programs or expanded existing ones.“
Private school choice could ‘undermine’ special education gains, COPAA says, K-12 Dive
Trump’s national school voucher program could mean a boom in Christian education, The Hechinger Report
Anti-immigration & ICE in schools
Tracker: ICE activity on K-12 school grounds, K-12 Dive
Immigration enforcement gets closer and closer to schools. The effects are wide-reaching, Chalkbeat
Federal immigration enforcement near schools disrupts attendance, traumatizes students and damages their academic performance, The Conversation
Parental stress, raids, and isolation: How immigration raids traumatize even the youngest children, The Hechinger Report
‘Band-Aid Virtual Learning’: How Some Schools Respond When ICE Comes to Town, EducationWeek
“Districts nationwide are increasingly weighing virtual learning as families express concern about the growing presence of federal immigration agents in communities and near schools.”
Kids, staff, parents detained: How federal activity in Minnesota is affecting schools and students, MPR News
ICE’S assault on a Minnesota school district, The New Yorker
Whistles and walkie-talkies: Minneapolis keeps guard over schools amid ICE arrests, Reuters
Twin Cities Parents and Educators Describe Terror of ICE Raids, Call for Help, The74
ICE detained a 5-year old Minnesota boy. School leader says agents used him as ‘bait’, MPR News
The ICE surge is fueling fear and anxiety among Twin Cities children, NPR
As ICE Targets Twin Cities Schools & Bus Stops: Even Citizens Keep Kids Home, The74
Minneapolis Schools Shut Down for 2 Days in Wake of ICE Clashes, Fatal Shooting, The74
Twin Cities Schools Offer Online Classes, The74
St. Paul schools leader: 1 in 4 students in virtual learning amid ICE surge; district tweaks grading, K-12 Dive
‘There are kids not going to school’: fear of ICE is keeping children from classes in Connecticut, The Guardian
Portland Public Schools says attendance has dropped since start of ICE operation, WGME 13
‘People shouldn’t live in fear’: Denver students protest ICE actions under Trump, ChalkBeat
“More than 1,000 Denver teachers called out of work Friday, with some joining students to march around the Colorado Capitol on a day of nationwide protests.”
Hundreds of Texas public school students walk out to protest ICE killings The Texas Tribune
Utah students walk out to protest ICE tactics: ‘Fascism has got to go’, The Salt Lake City Tribune
Thousands of students walk out of Arizona schools to protest ICE, Arizona’s Family 5
Indiana students hold ICE walkouts, Indiana Star
Thousands of students across the Bay Area walked out of schools in protest of ICE, ABC 7
Students walk out of schools in Knoxville to protest ICE, NBC 10
International Education News 