What Does Project 2025 Actually Plan For Education?
From Forbes.com
Word has spread about Project 2025 and its Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise, some of it accurate, some of it not. That’s not surprising; nobody really wants to read an entire 900-page policy document, and some of that document hints at more than it explicitly says.
What does the document actually have to say about education? Let’s take a deep breath and read carefully.
Education in the Foreword
Some of the broadest promises are laid out by Kevin Roberts (Heritage Foundation) in the foreword, where the first promise is to “restore the family as the centerpiece of American life and protect our children.”
Roberts calls for “deleting” a list of terms starting with “sexual orientation and gender identity” as well as “diversity, equity and inclusion,” “reproductive rights,” and a host of similar terms. It’s not clear how he proposes that “deleting” would occur, but through the 900 pages it becomes clear that the federal government would stop using them.
Roberts also calls for the criminalization of pornography and the imprisonment of any person who produce and distribute it; “Educators and public librarians who purvey it should be classed as registered sex offenders.” No specific definition of pornography is included.
Roberts demands that “parents’ rights” are non-negotiable and that “States, cities and counties, school boards, union bosses, principals, and teachers who disagree should be immediately cut off from federal funds.”
He declares “parental authority” central to policy, and in that context makes the call for vouchers clear, calling it “a goal all conservatives and conservative Presidents must pursue.”
The Chapter on Education
The education chapter was written by Lindsey Burke, chief of the Heritage Center’s Center for Education Policy. She’s also works at EdChoice, a school choice advocacy group formerly named after Milton Friedman, and she was part of Governor Glenn Youngkin’s transition team in 2021.
Burke leads off with some broad goals, including the elimination of the Department of Education and the goal that “families and students should be free to choose from a diverse set of school options and learning environments.” She salutes Friedman’s ideal, with education publicly funded but “education decisions are made by families.” She points to state leadership where the “future of education freedom and reform is bright and will shine brighter when regulations and red tape from Washington are eliminated.”