The country’s education secretary, Linda McMahon, says public schools are failing.
In November, she promised a “hard reset” of the system in which more than 80% of American children learn. But rather than invest in public education, she has worked to dismantle the Department of Education and make sweeping changes to how public schools operate.
“Our final mission as a ministry is to give each state full authority to carry the torch of educational recovery,” he said at a press conference in November.
To help carry out these and other goals, McMahon has brought in at least 20 advisers from ultra-conservative think tanks and advocacy groups who share her skepticism about the value of public education and call for fundamental change, including instilling Christian values in public schools.
ProPublica reporters Jennifer Smith Richards and Megan Omats spent months reporting and reviewing dozens of hours of video to understand the ideals and ambitions of those in power over federal education policy. They found a concerted push to downsize the public school system by steering taxpayer dollars toward options like private schools, religious schools, charter schools and homeschooling. The Department of Education did not respond to a detailed list of questions from ProPublica.
It also revealed that senior government officials have expressed a vision for the remaining public schools that rejects the separation of church and state and promotes a pro-American view of history that is “an uplifting depiction of our nation’s founding ideals.” Critics argue that the “patriotic” curriculum downplays the legacy of slavery and the paper more than episodes of discrimination.
Since its establishment in 1979, the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights has served as the nation’s anti-discrimination law enforcement agency in schools and colleges. It is a place for parents who believe that schools are not protecting their children from discrimination or providing equal access to education under the law.
In its first months, the Trump administration fired many staffers and prioritized investigations into schools accused of discriminating against white and Jewish students and admitting transgender students. McMahon and the department framed this as a course correction in line with efforts to increase efficiency and rein in diversity, equity, and inclusion policies from the previous administration. There is little recourse left for those trying to protect the rights of students with disabilities, students of color, and students facing gender discrimination.
In this video, Smith-Richards and Omats explain how McMahon and her advisors are re-envisioning the nation’s education system and what that means for the future.
Watch the video here.
