His order calling for universal school choice coincides with the latest Nation’s School Report Card results, which show a decline in reading and math scores.
President Donald Trump on Jan. 29 signed executive orders on prohibiting ideological “indoctrination” in K–12 schools and promoting universal school choice in every state.
The executive order bars federal funding for schools that adopt critical race theory (CRT) and gender ideology in classroom learning, according to fact sheets provided by the White House.
The secretary of education is expected to publish a strategy for ending the ideological programs in K–12 schools within 90 days.
The U.S. attorney general will work with state attorneys general and local district attorneys to enforce these measures and take legal action against school personnel who advocate gender transition.
The anti-indoctrination order also reinstates the 1776 Commission, which was implemented during Trump’s previous term but was removed under an executive order by President Joe Biden.
The 1776 Commission published a scholarly report that called for a national renewal of education centered on teaching the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence.
It was a direct response to the 1619 Project, which portrayed the United States as an inherently racist nation, stated that the main reason for the American Revolution was to preserve slavery, and laid the foundation for CRT in public schools.
A fact sheet that preceded Trump’s signing of the orders provided examples of situations in Pennsylvania and Virginia in which teachers are required to always use a student’s preferred name and pronouns even if that differs from how the child is identified by his or her parents.
It also noted an example of CRT in Virginia in which students were taught that their achievements were based on race rather than individual merit.
This contradicted the teachings of two parents in that school district, for example, who immigrated from Panama and opened small businesses.
Under the universal school choice executive order, “Defending Parental Rights and Educational Opportunity,” states will get federal money for K–12 scholarship programs that cover tuition for private schools or public schools that students elect to attend outside of their assigned neighborhood schools, including those on Indian reservations who would prefer to attend school elsewhere.
