The U.S. Department of Education has announced that it will delay wage garnishment for defaulted student loans. The move, revealed Friday, reverses the department’s earlier plan to gradually restart wage garnishment for groups of borrowers, and will allow the agency more time to finalize new repayment plans. Garnishing wages could have affect millions who are […]
Department of Education
Posted inEducation, HBCUs, Politics & Policy, Student Loans
Fate of HBCU Funding Uncertain as Trump Moves to Dismantle Education Department
In a move that could have disproportionate impacts on Black students and families, the Trump administration announced this month that it will relocate certain responsibilities out of the U.S. Department of Education in an effort to strip the agency of much of its authority. This includes plans to transfer several key programs — including those […]
Posted inEducation, Higher Education, Politics & Policy
Republicans Allege Discrimination at George Mason, but the Data Tells a Different Story
FAIRFAX, Virginia — Amani Banks, a George Mason University freshman, sat on the south side of the campus last week and pointed out that the student body is more diverse than her professors. When the college’s president, Gregory Washington, arrived on campus in 2020, he encouraged the hiring of more people of color through what […]
Posted inEducation, Politics & Policy
Federal Layoffs Put Head Start, FAFSA, and Civil Rights Investigations at Risk
The U.S. Department of Education has begun laying off more than 450 employees — many of whom oversee special education and civil rights enforcement. After the layoffs, a federal judge in San Francisco on Wednesday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from firing government workers. While the judge’s decision has temporarily prevented more cuts to government […]
Posted inEducation, Health, Partner Content
Parents Fear Losing Disability Protections as Trump Slashes Civil Rights Office
Devon Price, a 15-year-old boy with autism, has attended the largest school district in North Carolina for 10 years, but he cannot read or write. His twin sister, Danielle, who is also autistic, was bullied by classmates and became suicidal. Under federal law, public schools must provide children with disabilities a “free appropriate public education,” […]
Posted inEducation, HBCUs
Trump Shifts $435M to HBCUs As Other Minority-Serving Colleges Lose Funding
This story has been updated.The Trump administration said it will redirect $435 million to historically Black colleges and universities and tribal campuses as it defunds grant programs for other minority students at other institutions. On Monday, the Department of Education also announced it will invest more than $160 million in American history and civics education […]
Posted inEducation, Federal Overhaul, Politics & Policy
Shuttering Civil Rights Offices Could Affect Students’ Ability to Address Discrimination
Federal Overhaul is a multipart series that explores the impact of the Trump administration’s restructuring of the federal government on Black communities. Black teenager Ja’Liyah Celestine said that last year at her Texas high school, an officer pepper-sprayed her, grabbed her by hair, and kneed her in her face. A federal civil rights complaint was […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Dismissed by DEI: Trump’s Purge Made Black Women With Stable Federal Jobs an ‘Easy Target’
This story was originally published by ProPublica. In February 2020, President Donald Trump’s first education secretary issued a memo to employees emphasizing the department’s policy “to ensure that diversity, inclusiveness, and respect are integral parts of our day-to-day management and work.” “Diversity and inclusion are the cornerstone of high organizational performance,” Betsy DeVos continued, adding […]
Posted inEducation, Higher Education
Inside One Student Movement to Save DEI on College Campuses
Bradley Price traveled to the Kentucky governor’s office to show her support for the veto of an anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion bill. Alexandria Underwood took part in a letter-writing campaign calling for the preservation of inclusion programs on college campuses. And Savannah Dowell organized a demonstration in support of anti-discrimination efforts at Kentucky colleges and […]