The second Trump presidency will have immense repercussions on public education in the United States. Trump plans to fight “wokeness” in schools by censoring curriculums, sending decisions surrounding schooling back to the state level, and increasing barriers for LGBTQ+ students at school.
One of the 20 main goals of his presidency laid out on the Trump campaign website is to “cut federal funding for any school pushing critical race theory, radical gender ideology, and other inappropriate racial, sexual, or political content on our children.”
According to Project 2025 and Trump’s campaign, any school that discusses diversity, racial biases, and LGBTQ+ rights in its curriculum would be eligible to be defunded. That means that schools across the country could have their funding cut for simply discussing said issues.
At Jackson-Reed, diversity is a topic that is regularly discussed in many classes. Under Trump’s presidency, JR would have to either scale back teaching about diversity or face funding consequences, and certain classes, like African American Studies, could be banned.
In some states, the censorship that could come with the Trump presidency is already a reality. JR’s AP African American Studies and World History I teacher Ariel Alford used to teach in a Virginia public high school. Governor Younkin of Virginia had established a tip line for all VA high schools in 2022 (which has since been shut down) where students and parents could report teachers for talking about “divisive” topics.
At one point, a group of Alford’s students reported her “for not having an American Flag in [her] classroom and teaching in an unpatriotic way”. While the only consequence ultimately was having to talk with the students and hear their concerns, Alford saw how “even this small idea that parents and students could report teachers emboldened and empowered students” to file reports, discouraging teachers from educating on controversial topics. As Alford points out, “all these things that we are scared of happening have already been enacted, just not in DC”. With Trump’s second term, these attacks on free speech and diversity in schools in many red states could expand nationwide.
Trump also plans to attack LGBTQ+ rights in schools, especially on sports teams. Legislation already exists in many states around school curriculum bans, healthcare restrictions, and forced outings in schools (a requirement for transgender students to identify that they are transgender); these policies may become federal or easier for states to enact.
Additionally, Trump is a big proponent of school choice, allowing families to choose their schooling options. In the past, he has said he “is going to take the Department of Education, close it in Washington, [and] let the states run their education.”
As a part of his support of school choice, he advocates for private school tuition vouchers, which help subsidize private school tuition for families. Private school vouchers tend to help rich families save money on tuition and take away from public school funding, leaving schools with less federal money and students. While vouchers offer increased school choices, those who cannot access them are left with less money and resources for their education.
Eliminating the Department of Education would eliminate all federal oversight of school funding, financial aid, and discrimination, allowing states to make these decisions on their own. States could fund public schools as they please and teach whatever they want.
Whether you support Trump’s policies or not, the next four years will greatly change public education in America.
