Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Expands Educational Opportunities for American Families

The White House, January 30, 2025

DEFENDING PARENTAL RIGHTS AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY: Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order expanding educational freedom and opportunity for families. It recognizes that parents, not the government, play a fundamental role in choosing and directing the upbringing and education of their children.

• It directs the Department of Education to issue guidance on how the States can use federal funding formulas to support their K-12 scholarship programs.
• It directs the Secretary of Education to prioritize school choice programs in the Department’s discretionary grant programs.
• The Order requires the Department of Health and Human Services to issue guidance on how states receiving block grants for children and families can use those funds to support educational alternatives, including private and faith-based options.
• It directs the Secretary of Defense to submit a plan to the President for how military families can use Department of Defense funds to send their children to the school of their choice.
• The Order also directs the Secretary of the Interior to submit a plan to the President for how families with students attending Bureau of Indian Education schools can use federal funds to send their children to the school of their choice.

EMPOWERING PARENTS AND STUDENTS THROUGH SCHOOL CHOICE: Every child deserves the best education available, regardless of their zip code. However, for generations, our government-assigned education system has failed millions of parents, students, and teachers. This Executive Order begins to rectify that wrong by opening up opportunities for students to attend the school that best fits their needs.

• According to the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 70% of 8th graders were below proficient in reading and 72% were below proficient in math. 40% of 4th graders did not even meet the basic reading levels. 
• Standardized test scores have essentially been flat for over 30 years, despite hundreds of billions of dollars spent on government-run education.
• A dozen states have universal or near universal school choice programs and 33 states have some form of school choice program.
• School choice programs have a strong record of improving students’ academic performance.
• School choice has proven to be cost effective and saves taxpayer dollars.
• Parents report higher levels of school safety for their children who participate in school choice programs.
• Support for school choice is overwhelming, with 70% of Democrats, 73% of Black Americans, and 69% of Hispanic Americans in favor of it.
• President Trump is dedicated to ensuring every child has the opportunity to receive a world-class education.

FULFILLING THE PROMISE TO STRENGTHEN EDUCATION THROUGH FREEDOM AND OPPORTUNITY: President Trump promised to bring school choice to every family in the Nation. Today’s historic executive order is a critical step in delivering on that promise, and builds on the long list of accomplishments from the first Trump Administration, including:

• Calling on Congress to pass the School Choice Now Act and the Education Freedom Scholarships and Opportunity Act.
• Providing in-person learning options for low-income parents forced to send their children to virtual school during the pandemic.
• Re-authorizing the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program twice.
• Investing nearly $1.5 billion in the development of public charter schools, helping this innovative sector grow to 7,500 charter schools serving more than 3 million students.
• Allowing parents across the nation to withdraw up to $10,000 tax-free per year from 529 education savings plans to cover public, private, or religious K-12 schooling costs, thanks to the President’s historic tax cuts.

Parents can be confident that under his Administration, President Trump will provide every available opportunity for parents to enrich the education of their children through individual choice.

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Expanding Educational Freedom and Opportunity for Families

EXECUTIVE ORDER

The White House, January 29, 2025

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and to improve the education, well-being, and future success of America’s most prized resource, her young citizens, it is hereby ordered:

Section 1.  Purpose.  Parents want and deserve the best education for their children.  But too many children do not thrive in their assigned, government-run K-12 school.  According to this year’s National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 70 percent of 8th graders were below proficient in reading, and 72 percent were below proficient in math.  Moreover, geographically based school assignments exacerbate the cost of housing in districts with preferred schools, straining the finances of millions of American families sacrificing for their children’s futures. 

When our public education system fails such a large segment of society, it hinders our national competitiveness and devastates families and communities.  For this reason, more than a dozen States have enacted universal K-12 scholarship programs, allowing families — rather than the government — to choose the best educational setting for their children.  These States have highlighted the most promising avenue for education reform:  educational choice for families and competition for residentially assigned, government-run public schools.  The growing body of rigorous research demonstrates that well-designed education-freedom programs improve student achievement and cause nearby public schools to improve their performance. 

Sec. 2.  Policy.  It is the policy of my Administration to support parents in choosing and directing the upbringing and education of their children. 

Sec. 3.  Guidance on Supporting State-based K-12 Educational Choice.  Within 60 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Education shall issue guidance regarding how States can use Federal formula funds to support K-12 educational choice initiatives.

Sec. 4.  Encouraging Education Freedom through Discretionary Grant Programs.  (a)  The Secretary of Education shall include education freedom as a priority in discretionary grant programs, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law. 

(b)  Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education shall review their respective discretionary grant programs and each submit a plan to the President, through the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, that identifies, evaluates, and makes recommendations regarding using relevant discretionary grant programs to expand education freedom for America’s families and teachers. 

Sec. 5.  Expanding Opportunities for Low-Income, Working Families.  Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall issue guidance regarding whether and how States receiving block grants for families and children from the Department, including the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDGB), can use them to expand educational choice and support families who choose educational alternatives to governmental entities, including private and faith-based options.

Sec. 6.  Helping Military Families.  Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Defense shall review any available mechanisms under which military-connected families may use funds from the Department of Defense to attend schools of their choice, including private, faith-based, or public charter schools, and submit a plan to the President describing such mechanisms and the steps that would be necessary to implement them beginning in the 2025-26 school year.

Sec. 7.  Helping Children Eligible for Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) Schools.  Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior shall review any available mechanisms under which families of students eligible to attend BIE schools may use their Federal funding for educational options of their choice, including private, faith-based, or public charter schools, and submit a plan to the President describing such mechanisms and the steps that would be necessary to implement them for the 2025-26 school year.  The Secretary shall report on the current performance of BIE schools and identify educational options in nearby areas.  

Sec. 8.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b)  This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

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