The Role of Federal Education Policy
Too often, federal policy has become synonymous with centralized control—creating rigid mandates, bureaucratic burdens, and one-size-fits-all approaches that stifle innovation and ignore the diverse needs of families and schools. That’s why it is essential to both understand and shape how the federal government interacts with education at every level: to ensure that it supports, rather than hinders the actions of the states and communities, the autonomy of their educators, the power of parents to drive their own children’s education and, and the innovation necessary for meaningful education improvement.
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Latest Trump Administration Actions on Empowering States
02.03.2026
Federal Education Tax Credits (ECCA): What Families Need to Know Right Now
The Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA) establishes a federal tax-credit scholarship to expand K–12 education options for families -…
Tag: Parent Empowerment
01.05.2026
What We Know: US DOE Grants First ESEA Waiver to Iowa
The U.S. Department of Education approved Iowa as the first state to receive a Returning Education to the States Waiver,…
Tag: Funding
11.18.2025
White House Announces U.S. Department of Education Reorganization
The White House’s November 18th restructuring shifts key federal education programs to other agencies, creating major opportunities – but also…
Analysis & Opinions
Landmark Updates on Federal Education Policy
President Trump’s landmark efforts to change the trajectory of federal education policy through executive orders has friends and foes alike. There has never been as ambitious – or as speedy – an effort to unravel what has become an obtrusive education bureaucracy. The Trump Administration’s mission is clear – respect the authority of states accorded them by our Constitution. For education reform supporters, such an approach is an opportunity. For education system supporters, it’s a threat.
Below are selected analysis and recommendations about the long-term, and potentially transformational impact of these efforts on student outcomes and education systems at large.
Federal Support for Expanded Choice and Excellence
CER approaches federal education policy with the conviction that the government’s role in K-12 education is to provide data, highlight notable state and local milestones, foster innovation and support efforts to empower parents. Within that vision, several policy subtopics emerge as critical to expanding educational opportunity and driving innovation. Among these subtopics – notable in two executive orders – are some of the most consequential levers at the federal level and the issues where CER and its 200 plus partners around the nation representing more than 14 million students are and will continue to be most engaged.