What mother and father, lecturers say about Trump’s insurance policies on training

by Caroline Preston, The Hechinger Report
December 18, 2025

Youngster care staff, college students and lecturers shared dismay over Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids which might be disrupting studying. Faculty superintendents and school presidents described how uncertainty round federal funding is making their jobs far trickier. 

Others — together with a constitution college chief and a for-profit school president — informed The Hechinger Report they have been grateful for latest adjustments to training coverage, together with a brand new emphasis on college selection and on the significance of workforce training. 

These have been just some of the various reactions we heard from 17 mother and father, college students, educators and others across the nation once we requested in regards to the affect of President Donald Trump’s actions this 12 months on their faculties and communities. A number of folks informed us that with the federal authorities stepping again from a lot of its long-standing obligations in training, they and their communities have been taking up new roles. 

Beneath are excerpts from the interviews, which have been evenly edited for readability and size.      

Beneath this administration we now have witnessed ICE being in our neighborhoods. ICE detained two mother and father of our college students. The husband of one among my colleagues was detained and deported to Mexico. The husband of one other colleague was questioned at work as a result of he’s half Latino, half white. So it’s hit exhausting. After which with the cuts which have been made to the Training Division, these have hit my college. We have now a big inhabitants of particular training college students. We’re about 35 p.c Latino and the remainder of our college students are Black. A lot of our households obtain SNAP advantages and so they have been affected. Trump withheld $8 million from our faculties due to the mayor’s Black Scholar Success Plan, for college kids to proceed to study their historical past and convey extra Black lecturers into faculties. It’s virtually like we’ve taken hit after hit. It’s simply as anxious as once we had Covid. We have now needed to come to grips with the concept we should handle our personal. It’s going to be as much as us, to metropolis officers. Homelessness, well being care, psychological well being — all of these items should be addressed on the state and native degree, as a result of we will’t look forward to the federal authorities to get it proper. 

— Caroline Preston

Campus feels utterly completely different than two years in the past. The entire protests have stopped. The Trump administration successfully eradicated them. Whether or not you wish to say Columbia cares about antisemitism, they positively concern what it will imply to have $400 million stripped away from their finances. As a Jewish scholar on campus, I might completely say I’m glad that the change occurred. As somebody who’s a large proponent of democracy and free speech, I’ve qualms about it. What if there was an administration that didn’t align with what I feel is simply? We now have a precedent set the place the administration might snap their fingers and say that is what has to occur on campuses now. It’s barely scary the precedent that’s been set and the ability a president now has over greater training in America. 

— Meredith Kolodner 

Within the Trump administration, there’s a better affinity for the idea of college selection. That alone is a big breath of recent air. There are different issues, too — for instance, the federal tax credit score scholarship. On the floor, it could not look like that will profit constitution faculties, nevertheless it does. The cash might pay for tuition for a scholar to attend a non-public non secular college or it might cowl SAT prep, tutoring — and that goes to any sort of guardian. You might have mother and father in a public constitution college who now have the extra sources to have the ability to pay for the sorts of issues that quite a lot of middle- and upper-class households are doing to complement training for his or her children. 

With the Division of Training already closely gutted, it’s had zero affect on us — actually zero affect. However even when there’s not a proper federal Division of Training, there are a few completely different capabilities which might be necessary. One is because the scorekeeper: There completely must be an evaluation, annual or biannual, the place you possibly can constantly examine 2026 to 2024 to 2022 to 2020. That is essential as a result of we do want, each couple years, a way of what p.c of our children are studying towards a typical normal. I additionally suppose there may be worth in having sort of a finest practices reservoir in order that the federal authorities might be the place to indicate, ‘This is some modern work occurring in Indiana vs. New York.’ However usually, there is a very restricted variety of issues that I feel might actually add worth in training on the federal degree. 

— Nirvi Shah

Meka Mo, millennial comic and nonprofit employee in New York Metropolis who took out scholar loans for undergraduate and graduate college  

I am one of many individuals who ought to be receiving public service mortgage forgiveness, however that is in limbo and tied up in courtroom proper now. We do not know what is going on to occur. So truthfully, it is sort of a large number, and nobody’s being attentive to it, as a result of everybody has, like, one thousand different issues occurring. Mainly all our monetary futures are being fought out within the courts proper now. It is like they are not attempting to have social upward mobility within the nation. 

— Marina Villeneuve 

These have been locations the place folks might go and really feel a way of neighborhood and that they belonged someplace, and now these areas not exist. Among the scholar communities have been kind of dissolved — college students really feel at a loss for the place to go. We’re nonetheless attempting to conduct enterprise as common and make up for what’s missing, however all the pieces is simply getting extra threatened when it comes to what we’re even in a position to speak about. 

— Meredith Kolodner 

I’ve been a superintendent for 14 years. It’s positively getting tougher. It’s taking a job that’s already exhausting and getting tougher, and making it tougher nonetheless. And it seems that it’s being completed needlessly. The freezing and clawing again of Title II was introduced on June 30, when often we apply for it on July 1. After which they lastly launched it the second week of August. It was quite a lot of additional work making issues troublesome for a job that’s already troublesome. I don’t know what the sport was, as a result of Title II funding didn’t get clawed again. It simply made everyone anxious. 

— Ariel Gilreath

Michael A. Elliott, president of Amherst Faculty, in Massachusetts 

I see an affect within the rising nervousness of our worldwide college students, college and employees members. Many are questioning whether or not there’s a secure and steady place for them on our campus or on this nation. These uncertainties contact each a part of their lives — tutorial, private {and professional}. They affect choices about analysis, journey and connections with household, and so they undermine the sense of belonging and safety that’s important to a spot like Amherst. When members of our neighborhood carry this sort of persistent concern, the results are felt by all of us who care about them and wish to help them as extraordinary classmates and colleagues. 

— Lawrie Mifflin 

Kyshanna Patman, a North Carolina mom of 4 kids who works from house

It has been a loopy 12 months, particularly since he’s been in workplace, with the meals stamp advantages being delayed, Medicaid — it is loopy. After which the issues they’re saying about autism. My 4-year-old is autistic and it is actually, actually loopy how they’re making the idea about ladies taking Tylenol and inflicting autism. It has not been a great expertise since he’s been in workplace.

When SNAP advantages have been delayed, I used to be struggling attempting to provide you with the cash to maintain meals in the home. I’ve 4 children in the home and they should eat. I primarily made certain they’d sufficient earlier than I attempted to eat something myself.

And with the Medicaid work necessities, I simply do not perceive. It shouldn’t should be a requirement for folks to have Medicaid. Folks have preexisting circumstances. You’re speaking a few work requirement only for folks to be seen. It doesn’t make any sense. 

There’s too many adjustments he’s attempting to do. They’re not attempting to hearken to what folks should say. Folks put you in [office]. He’s imagined to be listening to us and dealing for us as a substitute of being stricter. You’re imagined to be serving to and he’s not doing that. He’s doing the exact opposite. 

— Jackie Mader 

Leslie Cornick, provost and vp of educational affairs at California State College, Chico, which misplaced funding for instructor coaching after the Trump administration canceled two grant packages of roughly $600 million, citing range, fairness and inclusion initiatives

One of many challenges we’re nonetheless persevering with to comply with up on is the lack of the Trainer High quality Partnership and SEED grants that help stipends for college kids who’re going into instructor teaching programs and changing into lecturers in rural counties and communities. A lot of these college students are Latinx and are coming to Chico State to grow to be lecturers to allow them to return into their rural communities that desperately want lecturers.

We misplaced $700,000 or so. We could not run all the fall cohort of that program this 12 months as a result of entry to these grants remains to be being litigated. We’re making the case for why these grants are so necessary and why they shouldn’t be discontinued. However within the meantime, we do not have the cash and so we will not help the scholars. Meaning we’re dropping college students that we’ll by no means get again. And there’s an affect not solely on that particular person scholar, however on that scholar’s household, generationally, and on our financial system within the state of California as a result of we’re not getting these lecturers out into these rural communities that want them.

From my perspective, it is critically necessary that we proceed to have interaction the administration in dialogue and assist them perceive particularly the worth of the regional public establishments. 

— Olivia Sanchez

The panorama of particular training has modified dramatically within the 13 years that I’ve been educating, and that’s due to the ample analysis and the quantity of effort that may go into advancing the sector, advancing the occupation. With out that, how do lecturers get higher? How will we study extra about how college students study finest? Perhaps we will agree that grants are good for furthering the sector.

A toddler ought to have the ability to go to any state within the nation and their wants ought to be supported primarily based on federal regulation in equal measure. On the finish of the day, the argument that we’re going to depart it as much as the states simply implies that they’ll interpret IDEA nevertheless they see match, with out anybody guaranteeing that that’s in compliance with what was written. That’s a harmful place to go away children. 

— Christina A. Samuels

Daniel Cordova, junior at Edmonds-Woodway Excessive Faculty within the Edmonds Faculty District in Washington state, which enrolls many kids of migrant mother and father who work on close by farms

It’s scary occasions proper now. You allow college, and also you don’t know should you’re going to see your folks the following day as a result of they could have some orders from the federal government to return to their nation. One in every of my buddies is an immigrant. He’s nervous like loopy about being deported. My pal’s mom has a deportation order. They’re struggling so much proper now. We really feel it throughout the entire college. 

It sort of adjustments the environment. There’s much less belief. It doesn’t really feel secure, I might say. 

— Neal Morton

Brad Kuykendall, CEO of the for-profit Western Technical Faculty, in El Paso, Texas 

I level again to the government order issued in April that handled making ready Individuals for high-paying expert commerce jobs for the long run. For much too lengthy, there’s been a scarcity of acknowledgement of the significance of profession, technical and commerce faculties. We have been checked out as a lesser choice for college kids, and to a level, that is nonetheless the case. However I feel we’re beginning to see that change a bit. The refocus and reemphasis — not as the one choice, however as one of many many choices — may be very wholesome for our financial system as an entire and for our nation to proceed to develop.

Beneath the Biden administration, we did really feel like there was positively not as pleasant of an atmosphere [for for-profit colleges] to function in. I did really feel that we have been underrepresented in lots of the negotiated rulemaking classes within the earlier administration on laws that impacted us excess of some other establishment. We have been one or two out of 15 seats on the desk, so attempting to come back to consensus a few regulation in that atmosphere was simply very troublesome. Going into negotiated rulemaking [to develop regulations under the ’big, beautiful bill’], I feel there’s extra honest illustration on the desk, and it is a extra balanced strategy. 

— Meredith Kolodner 

Mike Shaver, president and CEO at Brightpoint, an Illinois nonprofit that operates child-focused packages, together with free, federally funded Head Begin facilities and home-based Early Head Begin companies 

It is unattainable to flee that this administration has not precisely completed an important job at supporting poor households whenever you take a look at what occurred with the battle over SNAP advantages. And in our state, the elevated ICE enforcement actions have had a profound affect. We have now seen attendance ranges drop.

In November, an early studying worker — not somebody in our program — bought out of her automobile, was strolling into the power the place she was an teacher, and ICE brokers adopted her in, eliminated her from the constructing and detained her. It is actually exhausting to overstate what that sort of picture does, not just for the employees who present up daily to satisfy the wants of those households, but in addition the households themselves. That is simply quite a lot of added stressors for households, along with the challenges that already introduced them to our Head Begin packages. 

— Jackie Mader

Tiffany Tangel, a incapacity advocate and guardian of three — together with two kids with dyslexia and different studying variations — in western New York 

I am intently watching what’s taking place with IDEA. Trump mentioned he was going to maneuver it to Well being and Human Companies. Lots of people are nervous about that. There’s quite a lot of disabilities that don’t have anything to do with well being in that manner. My children have dyslexia. When it was newly identified for my oldest, I went to our pediatrician and requested for sources on dyslexia, for locations I might go for assist, and so they mentioned we do not know and the varsity ought to be serving to you.

I am additionally working to restart our college’s particular training PTA. Our faculty had one, nevertheless it closed in 2020. With a lot unknown when it comes to what’s subsequent for our children, a bunch of us simply felt like now it was wanted greater than ever. Our hope is to be a spot for the mother and father, as a result of when you may have children in particular training, it may be very lonely, and you are feeling very remoted. After which we actually do wish to deal with the lecturers, as a result of we all know as quickly as sources are lower, the lecturers are feeling it.

You have to preserve advocating at a federal degree, at a state degree, however it should come all the way down to your particular person degree, too. 

— Christina A. Samuels

Aiden Sirk, highschool senior, Lawrenceburg, Indiana

Conservatives, they are not about, ‘We do not need children to have an training,’ — it is that we wish to make it possible for we’re doing it in probably the most environment friendly manner potential. And with the Division of Training lower, what they’re ensuring they’re doing is that we’re nonetheless going to have Pell Grants, we’re nonetheless going to have FAFSA, I can see that’s OK. There may be quite a lot of paperwork on the Division of Training.

Lots of these staff, they’re getting paid and so they’re not even coming into the workplace like they have been pre-pandemic. So we did not really want all that workforce. However then once more, there’s a correct option to do issues. You may’t simply dictate: ‘We’re shutting it down.’ It’s important to undergo Congress. It’s important to undergo the courts. And you need to do it the fitting manner. So sure, I see it’s affordable, however the way in which they’re doing it’s not affordable. 

— Christina A. Samuels

Fort Lewis misplaced $2.27 million in Title III cash for Native American-serving establishments. The cash paid for tutorial success initiatives: summer season bridge packages, peer educators, varied tutorial helps. That impacts our whole campus. Sure, it helped Indigenous college students, nevertheless it additionally helped all of our college students. It is a part of the federal authorities belief accountability to help Native college students. The vast majority of our Native college students are usually not at tribal schools and universities. And the vast majority of tribal schools are two-year schools. The shifting of cash from Native-serving establishments to tribal schools — itʼs one-time cash, unfold throughout 36 establishments. 

— Nirvi Shah

Sevan Minassian-Godner, third-year scholar on the College of California, Irvine and president of Jewish fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi and Jewish campus group Hillel 

Oct. 7 was a very huge occasion on our campuses, and there was quite a lot of antisemitism floating round. However that sort of petered off after the primary 12 months, and we’re now at some extent the place it is a lot lower than it was my first 12 months. However I would not essentially attribute that to the Trump administration. I simply suppose we’re farther from the incident and from the encampments. I’ll say that we now have skilled an uptick in right-leaning antisemitism lately; there are extra teams on campus now which might be taking part in right-leaning antisemitism. I feel that is grow to be extra OK with the Trump administration in workplace. And I really do attribute it so much to Charlie Kirk’s loss of life, too. I feel that that ignited lots of people early on within the 12 months. Persons are extra overtly antisemitic, and particularly on the fitting, and this sort of far-right white supremacist ideology, I feel, has discovered its manner into much more folks’s hearts lately. 

— Meredith Kolodner 

Contact editor Caroline Preston at 212-870-8965, by way of Sign at CarolineP.83 or on e mail at preston@hechingerreport.org.

This story about training insurance policies and the Trump administration was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, impartial information group targeted on inequality and innovation in training. Join the Hechinger e-newsletter.

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