President Trump signed a series of executive orders on Wednesday focused on reshaping key areas of the American education system, from how discipline is handled in K–12 classrooms to tightening standards for university accreditation and workforce development.
One of the orders aims to reverse school discipline policies that originated under Presidents Obama and Biden. Speaking from the Oval Office, White House Staff Secretary Will Scharf said those earlier guidelines “caused problems for both teachers and students,” particularly around maintaining order in the classroom. While behavior issues in schools have spiked since the pandemic, it remains unclear how much direct authority the federal government will have in enforcing changes at the local level.
“President Trump is taking historic and commonsense action to boost school safety standards,” said Education Secretary Linda McMahon. “Disciplinary decisions should be based solely on students’ behavior and actions.”
In another order, Trump directed the Department of Education to advance the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in schools, citing the need to prepare students for a rapidly evolving economy.
“The basic idea here is that young Americans must be equipped with the skills to navigate AI tools effectively,” said Scharf. “This is about training the workforce of tomorrow, starting in the classroom.”
Targeting higher education, Trump also signed an order that cracks down on the college accreditation process. Accreditation is critical because it determines whether a university can access federal student aid. According to Scharf, many accrediting organizations have leaned too heavily on “woke ideology” rather than academic quality and performance.
This move has sparked concern among universities, especially after Trump pulled $2 billion in federal funding from Harvard University earlier this year for refusing to alter certain policies. Harvard has since taken legal action.
In addition, Trump signed an order reinforcing laws that require universities to disclose foreign gifts, an issue the administration claims has been widely ignored.
“There are laws requiring schools to report large foreign donations, and we believe that institutions like Harvard have repeatedly failed to comply,” Scharf said.
The president also announced a White House initiative aimed at strengthening support for historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). According to McMahon, the goal is to expand partnerships and help HBCUs become local economic and educational powerhouses.
Finally, Trump authorized a workforce development order designed to grow apprenticeship programs and dual-enrollment initiatives nationwide.
“The Trump administration will support communities that align education with real career paths,” McMahon said, emphasizing a need for stronger ties between education and employment.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.