成人抖阴

Education is at a Crossroads: Help Us Illuminate the Path Forward.听

This article is part of 成人抖阴鈥檚 EDlection 2024 coverage, which takes a look at candidates鈥� education policies and how they might impact the American education system after the 2024 election.

Former President Donald Trump may have pulled off an unthinkable upset, becoming the first previous commander-in-chief since 1892 to skip a term. But his defeat over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris left many education advocates wondering what another Trump administration, with his anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and talk of eliminating the U.S. Department of Education, could mean for the nation鈥檚 students 鈥� especially when performance is still lagging four years after the pandemic.

鈥淲e can’t exit this decade with students, in particular low-income students, performing worse than they were performing when they entered the decade,鈥� said Kevin Huffman, CEO of Accelerate, a nonprofit funding academic recovery efforts. 鈥淢y biggest fear is just that people will use the Department of Education as a battering ram for other issues and not use it as a force to take on academic outcomes for kids.鈥�

The Republican nominee, declaring this the 鈥済olden age of America,鈥� in battleground states, like Georgia and Florida, than he did in 2020. As expected, Republicans flipped the Senate and will hold at least a 52-seat majority, with a few races left to call. Control of the House remains undecided. 

Observers expect Trump to immediately nullify the Biden administration鈥檚 Title IX rule that extends protections against discrimination to LGBTQ students. 

Those who campaigned for Trump, and agree with his promises to end in schools, celebrated his comeback.

鈥淎merican parents voted for their children鈥檚 future,鈥� Tiffany Justice, co-founder of the conservative Moms for Liberty advocacy group, . Her name is already among those being tossed around as a possible . She told 成人抖阴 that she 鈥渨ould be honored to serve the next president of the United States of America.鈥�

Most clues about Trump鈥檚 early priorities come from the conservative Heritage Foundation鈥檚 , or Project 2025. In addition to eliminating Title I funding for low-income students and Head Start for preschoolers from poor families, the plan would remove references to LGBTQ people throughout federal policy.

But even if Washington ends up with a GOP trifecta and federal appointees handpicked by Heritage, the president-elect might not be able to deliver on some of his more bold promises to dismantle the education department and of illegal immigrants.

鈥淪ome of this rhetoric will be tempered with reality once the administration changes,鈥� said Keri Rodrigues, president of the National Parents Union. 鈥淭his is a president that we are very accustomed to. I understand people are nervous; they’re very concerned. But when it comes down to it, there’s also the reality of governing.鈥�

Eliminating the education department, for example, would require 60 votes in the Senate and would likely be unpopular in the House as well, even if Republicans are still in control, said David Cleary, a former Republican Senate education staffer now working for a left-leaning lobbying firm.

鈥淭he votes wouldn’t materialize,鈥� he said.

Michael Petrilli, president of the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute, added that 鈥渄raconian cuts鈥� in spending would also be difficult to pass. That鈥檚 why Trump is expected to accomplish some of his conservative agenda through executive orders.

鈥淟et’s assume that there is no grand reawakening to the problems that America faces and people stay in their partisan foxholes,鈥� Cleary said. 鈥淭rump will have to take a page out of [President Joe Biden鈥檚] playbook and do a lot by executive action and regulatory plans.鈥�

That would include halting enforcement of Biden鈥檚 Title IX rule 鈥� which, because of litigation from Republican-led governors, currently applies to only 24 states. Officials would likely restart the process of restoring the 2020 regulation completed under former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, which narrowed the definition of sexual assault and expanded due process rights for the accused.

One LGBTQ advocacy organization called Trump鈥檚 victory 鈥渁n immediate threat.鈥�

鈥淭oday, many in our community feel a profound sense of loss and concern for the future,鈥� Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, executive director of GLSEN, said in a statement, pointing to Heritage鈥檚 Project 2025 as the blueprint for how Trump would roll back policies that allow trans students to play on sports teams or use restrooms that match their gender identity. 鈥淲ith these changes, our young people could face increased discrimination, reduced access to safe spaces and diminished legal recognition.鈥�

Trump, a and, at 78, the oldest candidate ever elected president, is also expected to push for private school choice, perhaps along the lines of the $5,000 that passed a House committee in September. But despite the GOP鈥檚 enthusiasm for vouchers and education savings accounts, which allow parents to use public funds for private school tuition and homeschooling expenses, some advocates would like to see greater support for the charter sector.

Petrilli, a self-described 鈥渘ever-Trumper,鈥� said he鈥檚 worried about returning to 鈥渢he political dynamics鈥� of Trump鈥檚 first term, which didn鈥檛 benefit charter schools.

鈥淩eform-oriented Democrats were sidelined or silenced,鈥� he said. 鈥淕iven that there are a lot of kids in blue states like California, New York, and Illinois who desperately need high-quality educational options, this would be a terrible development.鈥�

But Rodrigues sees some bright spots in Republicans鈥� focus on parental rights and school choice. 鈥淭hose things can be positive when not taken to the extreme,鈥� she said.

She鈥檚 encouraged by the prospect of Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana becoming chair of the Senate education committee, where he has already highlighted the importance of improving . 

While the National Parents Union has had close interaction with Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and the White House, she said leaders have had ongoing 鈥渄eep conversations鈥� with those on both sides of the aisle.

鈥淧rogress will be made for children in any and all conditions, regardless of what happens in the House and the change up in the Senate,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 think the depth of our relationships are not confined to one particular party.鈥�

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