Republican Assault on Public Education (3 Viewers)

[MT15]

This probably needs its own thread. It ties in with a lot of different R culture wars: Attacks on universities, attacks on CRT and “woke”. Classifying teachers and librarians as “groomers”. Pushing vouchers to send tax money to private, often religious, schools. Betsy DeVos was an advocate for all these policies that will weaken public education, and there are several billionaires who also want to dismantle public education. Public education may have its faults, but it is responsible for an amazing amount of upward mobility. Kids from poor areas can still get a college prep education in a public school.

Vouchers (sometimes disguised as “school choice”) are a particular peeve of mine. Public money is diverted from poor schools to wealthy private schools, which aren’t required to offer accommodations for special needs or challenged students. Families with special needs kids are left out. Rural areas often suffer disproportionately because there are no private schools to attend, but their public schools still see the reduction in funding. Often the families who take advantage of the voucher money are upper class and the private schools simply raise tuition knowing the families are getting taxpayer money now.

Greg Abbot is being particularly vile in this area. No surprise. Voters will have to make a statement about public education. If we want to halt the growing divide in this country between the “haves” and “have-nots”, we need to pay attention to public education.

 

[MT15]

Something tells me they aren't interested in reports of discrimination against minorities in school
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The Department of Education is teaming up with the far-right activist group Moms for Liberty, launching a portal Thursday where parents can submit tips to the department to investigate as part of the crusade to end diversity and inclusion efforts in schools.

In a press release, the department announced it was launching the portal so that anyone can “submit reports of discrimination based on race or sex in publicly-funded K-12 schools,” which the department would then use as a guide “to identify potential areas for investigation.”

The press release included a statement from Tiffany Justice, a co-founder of Moms for Liberty and Heritage Foundation employee. Justice claimed that “parents have been begging schools to focus on teaching their kids practical skills like reading, writing, and math, instead of pushing critical theory, rogue sex education and divisive ideologies — but their concerns have been brushed off, mocked, or shut down entirely.”

Justice, who heads an organization whose members have been accused of waging harassment campaigns and repeatedly rebuked in school board elections, went on to say: “This webpage demonstrates that President Trump’s Department of Education is putting power back in the hands of parents.”.......................

Moms for Liberty, Education Department launch program to report teachers who promote diversity

The department has created a tip line for people to report schools accused of promoting DEI policies

www.salon.com

People should flood it with actual reports of discrimination and abuse. Not the fake kind they want to pretend exists.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Guess this can go here
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(CNN) — As President Donald Trump prepares to order the dismantling of the Department of Education, the financial arm of the agency – which makes loans directly to borrowers and manages trillions of dollars in student debt – faces an uncertain future, with steep staff cuts and lack of communication exacerbating the uncertainty, according to interviews with more than a dozen current and former department employees.

The $1.64 trillion financial portfolio is managed separately from the department’s policy apparatus, the latter of which Trump has sought to wind down or reassign to other agencies. But Trump acknowledged Thursday that the massive loan balance was a complicating factor in his effort to shutter the agency.

“We’ve actually had that discussion today,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, suggesting that the debt could land at Treasury, Commerce, or the Small Business Administration. He said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler “would really like to do it.”

And then there is the question of whether the government will stay in the business of lending money to students directly……

In Project 2025’s vision, old loans should be moved to the Treasury Department, which would manage defaults and collections.

How Treasury would manage the portfolio is unclear. Roughly 40% of the loans are currently delinquent, or behind in payment, according to people familiar with the data; after 90 days, the missed payments are reported on a borrower’s credit report, and after 270 days without payment, the loan officially goes into default.

Experts warn that an avalanche of new defaults could be approaching as borrowers come to terms with the end of a multi-year pause on loan payments and changes to more affordable payment programs.

“It’s a tidal wave coming for an unprepared village,” said one former senior Education Department employee who departed recently. “The fallout is not even hypothetical now.”………

Dismantling of Education Department puts future of trillions of dollars in student loans in question | CNN Politics

As President Donald Trump prepares to order the dismantling of the Department of Education, the financial arm of the agency – which makes loans directly to borrowers and manages trillions of dollars in student debt – faces an uncertain future, with steep staff cuts and lack of communication...

www.cnn.com

 

[superchuck500]

No, this isn't shady AF.

The Education Department will close its Washington-area offices beginning Tuesday evening for unspecified “security reasons,” according to a notice sent to agency employees.

Department employees must vacate the building by 6 p.m., according to the Tuesday notice, and have been allowed to work from home on Wednesday if they have approved telework agreements. “Employees will not be permitted in any ED facility on Wednesday, March 12th”, for any reason,” the message said.

All offices were set to reopen to in-person work on March 13th, according to the notice.
An agency spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/11/education-department-close-security-00224406

 

[DJ1BigTymer]

No, this isn't shady AF.

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/11/education-department-close-security-00224406

Meanwhile, the evil liar that is Speaker of the House just skipped town after passing a bill that cedes congressional responsibilities to the Emperor. This false information fed to government employees by the government should have, at the very least, piqued Congress' attention.

 

[MT15]

Just amazing. I have no words.

 

[superchuck500]

 

[superchuck500]

 

[Dragon]

DHS’ presence on the campus came just hours after it was revealed that the Trump administration – through the Department of Education, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the General Services Administration – delivered a letter to Columbia with a list of actions it demanded the university take before it would consider reinstating $400 million in grant funding it cut from the school over what it claimed was the university’s “inaction” in addressing antisemitism.

The Trump administration’s demands included, among other things:

• Disciplining students involved in last year's protest at Hamilton Hall, when students occupied the building and renamed it Hind's Hall. “Meaningful discipline means expulsion or multi-year suspension,” the administration emphasized
• Centralizing all disciplinary processes under the university president’s office, and empowering the president to suspend or expel students, with an appeal process only through the president
• “Ban masks that are intended to conceal identity or intimidate others, with exceptions for religious and health reasons,” with masked individuals having to wear their school IDs outside their clothing
• Formalizing a definition of antisemitism (the administration referenced the IHRA definition it uses, which may limit criticism of Israel) and addressing “Anti-Zionist discrimination in “areas unrelated to Israel or Middle East”
• Implementing “comprehensive admissions reform”
• Placing the Middle East, South Asian, and African Studies department under an academic receivership for a minimum of five years – meaning, taking over the department and installing a new department chair

BREAKING: DHS Agents Descend on Columbia’s Campus – Again – to Serve Two Warrants

The raid came the same day the Trump administration demanded Columbia address “anti-Zionist” discrimination.

zeteo.com

The actions taken by the Trump administration against Columbia University represent a troubling case of constitutional overreach and the politicization of education. By leveraging federal funding as a means to force compliance with ideological demands, the administration is undermining both the university’s autonomy and the fundamental right to free speech.

Universities are meant to be bastions of academic freedom, where ideas—both popular and controversial—can be debated openly. The administration’s directive to expel or suspend students for engaging in protests is an outright attack on the First Amendment. Protest is a cornerstone of democracy, and criminalizing dissent undercuts the very freedoms the Constitution is meant to protect.

Centralizing disciplinary power under the university president and limiting appeals is another alarming move toward authoritarian control over student expression. This creates a top-down enforcement model designed to silence opposition rather than promote a fair and impartial process. Similarly, the mask ban—while framed as a security measure—opens the door to selective enforcement against protesters while exempting those aligned with the administration’s views.

Even more concerning is the directive to place an entire academic department under government-mandated oversight. This is a clear attempt to censor scholarship and reshape academia to fit a political agenda. The forced restructuring of the Middle East, South Asian, and African Studies department signals a dangerous precedent where federal authorities dictate the boundaries of academic inquiry.

The use of federal funds to coerce ideological conformity is not just an overreach—it is an assault on the principles of higher education and democracy itself. If universities bow to such demands, it will mark a shift toward government-controlled education, where free thought is replaced by state-mandated narratives. No administration—regardless of party—should have the power to dictate how academic institutions operate based on political motivations.

 

[Dragon]

European universities are stepping up and offering posittions to US researchers who are no longer able to continue their research under the current regieme

In a context where some scientists in the United States may feel threatened or hindered in their research, our university announces the establishment of the Safe Place For Science program dedicated to welcoming scientists wishing to pursue their work in an environment conducive to innovation, excellence and academic freedom.

A major player in European research, Aix-Marseille University offers cutting-edge infrastructure, major international collaborations and strong support for scientists working on disruptive and forward-looking themes.

The AMIDEX Foundation will support the funding of positions, particularly those related to climate, the environment, health and human and social sciences (HSS).

https://www.univ-amu.fr/fr/public/a...universite-prete-accueillir-les-scientifiques

 

[Optimus Prime]

WASHINGTON (AP) — More than 50 universities are being investigated for alleged racial discrimination as part of President Donald Trump’s campaign to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs that his officials say exclude white and Asian American students.

The Education Department announced the new investigations Friday, one month after issuing a memo warning America’s schools and colleges that they could lose federal money over “race-based preferences” in admissions, scholarships or any aspect of student life.

“Students must be assessed according to merit and accomplishment, not prejudged by the color of their skin,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “We will not yield on this commitment.”

Most of the new inquiries are focused on colleges’ partnerships with the PhD Project, a nonprofit that helps students from underrepresented groups get degrees in business with the goal of diversifying the business world.

Department officials said that the group limits eligibility based on race and that colleges that partner with it are “engaging in race-exclusionary practices in their graduate programs.”

The group of 45 colleges facing scrutiny over ties to the PhD Project include major public universities such as Arizona State, Ohio State and Rutgers, along with prestigious private schools like Yale, Cornell, Duke and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.............

More than 50 universities face federal investigations as part of Trump's anti-DEI campaign

More than 50 universities are being investigated for alleged racial discrimination as part of President Donald Trump’s campaign to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs his officials say exclude white and Asian American students.

apnews.com

 

[Optimus Prime]

The Trump administration’s unprecedented pressure campaign on American higher education – which is forcing major universities to bow to its demands or risk investigations and the loss of millions of dollars in federal money – is so far facing little pushback from the schools affected.

That campaign escalated earlier this month, when the US government cancelled $400m in federal contracts and grants to Columbia University.

In a subsequent letter, representatives of three federal agencies said they would reconsider that freeze only if Columbia agreed to conditions including more aggressively disciplining students who engage in pro-Palestinian disruptions, planning “comprehensive” reform of the school’s admissions policies, and placing one of school’s area studies departments under “academic receivership” – meaning under the control of an outside chair.

Other colleges and universities across the US have been watching to see how Columbia reacts to the letter, which is widely viewed as a test case for academic freedom.

In an interview with the Chronicle of Higher Education, Lee Bollinger, Columbia’s former president, described the situation as “an authoritarian takeover”.

Yet ahead of a Thursday deadline for compliance, the Wall Street Journal has reported that Columbia appears to be poised to yield to the Trump administration’s demands.

The government’s confrontation with Columbia, which critics describe as ideological blackmail and possibly illegal, is only one of a number of shots that the administration has fired in recent days across the bow of American elite higher education – and so far, opposition has been surprisingly minimal, as colleges and universities weigh whether to surrender, negotiate or fight back.

Many of the demands that the Trump administration is making are not lawful, Jameel Jaffer told the Guardian. Jaffer, who said that he did not speak for the university, is the executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia.

“They can’t require Columbia to take the steps that they’re demanding Columbia take, and no university could take these kinds of steps without completely destroying its credibility as an independent institution of higher education, or take these steps consistent with the values that are common to universities in the United States.”

A chill has descended on American academia, advocates for freedom of expression say, with professors, graduate students and researchers fearful that they’ll lose jobs or funding – because of their political opinions, or merely because they work at an institution that has come under the Trump administration’s Medusa gaze.………..

US universities face choice to surrender or fight back against Trump’s takeover

‘Extraordinary fear’ takes hold at universities as Trump campaign threatens investigations or loss of federal funds

www.theguardian.com

 

[Optimus Prime]

 

[coldseat]

That guy's a forking moron. All he has are his right wing catch phrases.

 

[DJ1BigTymer]

That guy's a forking moron. All he has are his right wing catch phrases.

He forgot to mention Hillary, I could've had BINGO!

 

[UriUT]

The Trump administration’s unprecedented pressure campaign on American higher education – which is forcing major universities to bow to its demands or risk investigations and the loss of millions of dollars in federal money – is so far facing little pushback from the schools affected.

That campaign escalated earlier this month, when the US government cancelled $400m in federal contracts and grants to Columbia University.

In a subsequent letter, representatives of three federal agencies said they would reconsider that freeze only if Columbia agreed to conditions including more aggressively disciplining students who engage in pro-Palestinian disruptions, planning “comprehensive” reform of the school’s admissions policies, and placing one of school’s area studies departments under “academic receivership” – meaning under the control of an outside chair.

Other colleges and universities across the US have been watching to see how Columbia reacts to the letter, which is widely viewed as a test case for academic freedom.

In an interview with the Chronicle of Higher Education, Lee Bollinger, Columbia’s former president, described the situation as “an authoritarian takeover”.

Yet ahead of a Thursday deadline for compliance, the Wall Street Journal has reported that Columbia appears to be poised to yield to the Trump administration’s demands.

The government’s confrontation with Columbia, which critics describe as ideological blackmail and possibly illegal, is only one of a number of shots that the administration has fired in recent days across the bow of American elite higher education – and so far, opposition has been surprisingly minimal, as colleges and universities weigh whether to surrender, negotiate or fight back.

Many of the demands that the Trump administration is making are not lawful, Jameel Jaffer told the Guardian. Jaffer, who said that he did not speak for the university, is the executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia.

“They can’t require Columbia to take the steps that they’re demanding Columbia take, and no university could take these kinds of steps without completely destroying its credibility as an independent institution of higher education, or take these steps consistent with the values that are common to universities in the United States.”

A chill has descended on American academia, advocates for freedom of expression say, with professors, graduate students and researchers fearful that they’ll lose jobs or funding – because of their political opinions, or merely because they work at an institution that has come under the Trump administration’s Medusa gaze.………..

US universities face choice to surrender or fight back against Trump’s takeover

‘Extraordinary fear’ takes hold at universities as Trump campaign threatens investigations or loss of federal funds

www.theguardian.com

I want point out that columbia university has a large Jewish student body..~20%. Attacking it will harm those students. Yet the adl sided with trump. Get that.

 

[Lapaz]

Without the Department of Education, how will the government run Title 1 to manage funding for low income schools, or the college loan programs, or civil rights disputes? I also keep hearing that DE was running school curriculums and are responsible for poor education, but that isn’t true. School curriculums and management are run locally. The DE only has responsibility to help disabled kids and otherwise provide funding.

 

[fooferdoggie]

I want point out that columbia university has a large Jewish student body..~20%. Attacking it will harm those students. Yet the adl sided with trump. Get that.

yes while protecting Jews he attacks them at the same time. that brain of his has some serious glitches.

 

[fooferdoggie]

Without the Department of Education, how will the government run Title 1 to manage funding for low income schools, or the college loan programs, or civil rights disputes? I also keep hearing that DE was running school curriculums and are responsible for poor education, but that isn’t true. School curriculums and management are run locally. The DE only has responsibility to help disabled kids and otherwise provide funding.

they have no cliue how it works just like their dear leader. trump is doing this so he can rule colleges and control them and fork everyone else.