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President Trump on Wednesday signed a list of executive actions aimed at both higher education and K-12 schools.

One of the actions takes aim at college and university accreditors, organizations the White House 

 have "abused their authority by imposing discriminatory diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)-based standards."

Another promises new discipline guidance for K-12 schools, with the goal of "ensuring school discipline policies are based on objective behavior, not DEI," the White House 

"Today's Executive Orders pave the way for critical innovations — inviting more competition in the higher education accreditation system, ensuring transparency in college finances, supporting new technologies in the classroom, and more," Education Secretary Linda McMahon 

The collection of orders aim to cement Trump's conservative agenda when it comes to education in America, including rolling back the policies from the Biden administration, bolstering workforce training, improving teaching about artificial intelligence in schools, and launching a new White House initiative on historically Black colleges and universities.

 directs McMahon to "overhaul" the system. 

 colleges are required to go through to receive federal financial aid, aimed at ensuring that a program meets an acceptable level of quality.

Trump referred to accreditation on the campaign trail as his "secret weapon" in his efforts to combat what he considers ideological bias in higher education. The executive action aims to use the process as a way to hold colleges accountable for "ideological overreach" and to increase "intellectual diversity" on campus.

The action directs the education secretary to recognize new accreditors in an effort to encourage more competition. Trump has previously modified the accreditation system: 

, he removed geographic restrictions on which accreditors schools could use.

 warns that federal grants for universities could be revoked if schools do not complete "full and timely disclosure of foreign funding."

In a briefing announcing the order, White House staff secretary Will Scharf said, "We believe that certain universities, including, for example, Harvard, have routinely violated this law, and this law has not been effectively enforced."

Federal law already requires schools to disclose gifts or contracts worth $250,000 or more from foreign entities. This new order doesn't provide specific thresholds or new rules, but instead asserts that universities "provide the American people with greater access to general information about foreign funding."

In an executive action aimed at K-12 schools, Trump requested 

 on school discipline. The measure calls for revoking previous policies by Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama aimed at reducing racial disparities in, for example, suspensions and expulsions. The new guidance would prohibit using "racially preferential discipline practices."

The other executive actions issued Wednesday aim

" at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); to 

 like apprenticeships in high-demand trade jobs; and to establish a White House task force on teaching artificial intelligence (AI) in schools, 

prioritizing research on the use of AI in education

Education News

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Elissa Nadworny 

Author

The directives include new efforts to curtail DEI programs at colleges, and discipline guidance for public schools.

Trump signs executive actions on education, including efforts to rein in DEI

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