Trump pledges to eliminate leftist ideology in schools and abolish the Department of Education
The Biden-Harris administration tore down women’s protections in favor of transgender-identifying students
Trump promises to revoke the current administration's changes
Where Trump stands
During his campaign, Donald Trump has committed to a comprehensive overhaul of the American education system, with a primary focus on eliminating woke ideology.
Conservatives have sharply criticized public schools for promoting concepts like critical race theory, and for implementing programs supporting or encouraging transgenderism. He’s proposed using federal power to investigate schools that adopt race-based or gender-based discrimination policies.
By targeting specific programs, Trump also aims to curb diversity initiatives and stop schools from integrating lessons on systemic racism or white privilege.
During Trump’s presidential administration, he reauthorized and funded Washington, DC’s school voucher program, benefiting low-income black students — instead of pushing ideology that divides students based on their skin color.
Additionally, his 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act allowed families to use 529 savings plans to save for their children’s K-12 education. And in direct opposition to priorities favored by Biden-Harris and the Democratic Party, the Trump administration in 2020 announced new Title IX enforcement aimed at combating sexual assault in K-12 schools while restoring due process protections for those accused of it.
Trump's appointment of three conservative Supreme Court justices also led to their outlawing of affirmative action policies, often used by universities to lower admissions standards and prioritize admissions based on race, not merit.
A central tenet of Trump’s current platform is the abolition of the Department of Education (DOE). He argues that education should be managed at the state level, claiming that federal oversight allows schools to indoctrinate children into leftist ideology. Trump suggests shifting all education-related responsibilities to state governments, allowing them to decide on curriculum and policy independently.
Additionally, Trump has proposed policies to protect young women in sports. He’s pledged to revoke the Biden-Harris administration’s Title IX regulations that allow boys who identify as girls to dominate sports, among other policies.
Finally, Trump’s stance on “universal school choice” would allow public funds to cover tuition for private and charter schools, expanding parents’ options beyond traditional public schools.
His proposals also include the passage of a Parental Bill of Rights, which would allow parents to access educational material and ensure parental consent for any discussions on gender or sexuality.
Where Harris stands
Though she has a history of pushing progressive ideology in schools, a significant portion of Kamala Harris’ current education platform is dedicated to ending “the unreasonable burden of student loan debt” that she claims hinders Americans from reaching the middle class.
Under President Joe Biden’s administration, he took multiple actions to pass student debt relief, though he faced challenges from the Supreme Court, which struck down some of his plans as unconstitutional. However, he has been able to get around them, still managing to wipe out nearly $170 billion in student debt.
During Harris’ vice presidency, the government implemented policies that have reshaped federal guidelines for schools, including controversial updates to Title IX that rewrote it to include “gender identity” protections.
This new interpretation of Title IX explicitly inverts the legal meaning of “sex” to allow anyone access to facilities like bathrooms and locker rooms of the opposite sex and to participate in sports teams aligned with their gender identity.
These protections, however, have spurred legal challenges from 15 US states.
Proposed guidelines from the Biden-Harris administration also sought to include the teaching of critical race theory to students, and cited the widely discredited 1619 Project that contained lessons on how America is fundamentally racist.
Conservatives argue that these concepts are divisive, alienate students, and are not historically accurate. Nevertheless, Harris maintained that these lessons are vital for fostering an inclusive education.
While attempting to moderate her stance for the general election, Harris is choosing to tamp down her previous progressive loyalties to focus on student debt and supporting the middle class.
Why it matters
Public schools across America are already ideological battlegrounds over which presidential administrations fight for control. The Biden-Harris administration fought to include radical gender and racial ideology into children’s curriculums, while President Trump kept schools free of these.
Donald Trump’s administration saw real improvements for all students, regardless of race or sex. A Harris administration would likely try to force schools to teach a divisive curriculum and, perhaps most importantly, force transgender “protections” that permit boys to intrude in girls’ bathrooms, locker rooms, and sports teams.
