The Loudoun County school board will no longer force staff to use students&#8217; preferred pronouns after teachers sued over the Northern Virginia school district&#8217;s transgender policy, a court ruled on Thursday.
In a free speech victory for several teachers who sued, the Loudoun County Circuit Court officially recognized that Loudoun County Public Schools no longer requires teachers to use pronouns inconsistent with students’ biological sex.
The court noted that &#8220;on its face, [the transgender policy] does not require teachers or other staff to use a pronoun to refer to a person that a teacher believes is inconsistent with the person’s sex. Instead, [the policy] permits staff to refrain from using any pronouns.”
The transgender <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/loudoun/Board.nsf/files/D7VLH356939A/$file/8040.pdf">policy</a>, which was adopted in 2021, allows &#8220;gender-expansive or transgender students&#8221; to choose their names and pronouns. Originally, officials stated that it required teachers to use them as well.
&#8220;Staff or students who intentionally and persistently refuse to respect a student’s gender identity by using the wrong name and gender pronoun are in violation of this policy,&#8221; the policy reads.
However, the Loudoun County school board backed down on requiring teachers to use pronouns after Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys <a href="https://adfmedia.org/case/vlaming-v-west-point-school-board/">won</a> a victory on the same issue for another high school teacher, Peter Vlaming, in a different Virginia school district.
Thursday&#8217;s court ruling affirms the school board&#8217;s new interpretation of its policy.
This is the second victory for Loudoun County teachers in this case.
In May 2021, physical education teacher Tanner Cross spoke at a school board meeting and expressed his concerns that the new transgender policy would violate teachers and parents&#8217; rights and be harmful to students.
A few days later, Cross was suspended by Leesburg Elementary School.
He <a href="https://adfmedia.org/case/cross-v-loudoun-county-school-board/">ultimately</a> got his job back when Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys sued on his behalf, and the Virginia Supreme Court ruled that his constitutional rights had likely been violated.
&#8220;Unfortunately, thereafter &#8230; the school board adopted [the transgender policy] without making any revisions or addressing any of the concerns that Tanner or the other parents and teachers addressed,&#8221; Tyson Langhofer, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, told The Daily Wire.
Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys added two more teachers to the lawsuit against the policy — Smart’s Mill Middle School English teacher Kim Wright and Loudoun County High School history teacher Monica Gill.
&#8220;Thankfully, now after several years of litigation, the school has agreed that its policy does not and cannot compel teachers to use pronouns that students request which are inconsistent with the student&#8217;s sex,&#8221; Langhofer said.
Gill, one of the plaintiffs celebrating Thursday&#8217;s ruling, has taught in Loudoun County for nearly 25 years.
&#8220;I treasure all my students, regardless of whether they identify as the opposite sex,&#8221; Gill said in a statement to The Daily Wire.
However, the transgender policy &#8220;threatened to make me ignore biological reality and lie to my students,&#8221; Gill said.
&#8220;This policy jeopardized the dignity of all students,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I&#8217;m pleased that the school district has now honored my constitutionally protected freedom to speak to my students in love and truth.&#8221;
Loudoun County has been a flash point in the national controversy over transgender ideology in schools, starting with The Daily Wire&#8217;s bombshell 2021 <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/loudoun-county-schools-tried-to-conceal-sexual-assault-against-daughter-in-bathroom-father-says">investigation</a> into a father&#8217;s claim that the school district covered up the rape of his daughter by a male student in a skirt in the girls&#8217; school bathroom.
&#8220;For many, many years, Loudoun County, along with many other school boards across the country, have acted as if they control, that they&#8217;re ultimately responsible for the education of the children rather than parents,&#8221; attorney Langhofer said.
&#8220;They&#8217;ve also acted as if they get to control all of teachers&#8217; speech and that they can punish teachers for disagreeing with the school on really important topics such as human sexuality and gender identity,&#8221; he said.
&#8220;So this ruling is a great victory for teachers who don&#8217;t want to express messages that they think are untrue or are harmful to students and also don&#8217;t want to mislead parents about how their schools are treating the students at school,&#8221; the attorney said.

Trans Rights Protest At Downing Street As UK Government Blocks Scottish Parliament Law On Self Identification

EXCLUSIVE: Loudoun County Teachers Don’t Have To Use Trans Pronouns, Court Rules

EXCLUSIVE: Loudoun County Teachers Don't Have To Use Trans Pronouns After Lawsuit

Education

Loudoun County

Public Schools

Transgender

Virginia

The Department of Justice opened up an investigation into George Mason University on Thursday over employment practices that may discriminate against white people and men.
In a <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1408276/dl">letter</a> to the university, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division stated that the investigation would focus on whether the university had violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which addresses employment discrimination.
“It is unlawful and un-American to deny equal access to employment opportunities on the basis of race and sex,” Dhillon said. “When employers screen out qualified candidates from the hiring process, they not only erode trust in our public institutions — they violate the law, and the Justice Department will investigate accordingly.”
Dhillon’s letter said that the actions of University President Gregory Washington were the focus of the investigation.
“The investigation stems from statements and policies made by the University’s president, which indicate that race and sex are motivating factors in faculty hiring and other employment decisions to achieve ‘diversity’ goals,” the Justice Department <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-launches-investigation-employment-practices-george-mason-university">said</a>. “Multiple emails and internal documents suggest preferential treatment of certain races and sexes in hiring and other employment practices, including promotion and tenure of faculty members.”
In an email from July 23, 2020, Washington said he wanted to “develop” a “renewal, promotion, and tenure process” to help “faculty of color and women in their professional work.”
In that same email, Washington said that he was working to “develop specific mechanisms in the promotion and tenure process that recognize the invisible and uncredited emotional labor that people of color expend to learn, teach, discover, and work on campus.”
Dhillon also said that the university would intentionally list race on faculty member hiring panels “to ensure greater non-white participation in the hiring process.”
Last week, the Department of Education also <a href="https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-opens-title-vi-investigation-george-mason-university">launched</a> a Title VII investigation into George Mason over its hiring policies. The investigation was launched after the department received a complaint from multiple professors alleging racial discrimination.
The university denied any wrongdoing in response to the Education Department investigation.
“I can assure you that George Mason has always operated with a commitment to equality under the law, ever since our inception. It is simply the Mason way, and in my experience, it has not discriminated based on race, color, national origin, or otherwise,” Washington <a href="https://www.gmu.edu/news/2025-07/update-university-response-investigations">said</a>. “Our diversity efforts are designed to expand opportunity and build inclusive excellence – not to exclude or advantage any group unlawfully.”

Statue of George Mason on campus of George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia

Justice Dept Probing Another University Over Racially-Based Hiring Goals

Civil Rights

Department of Justice

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

George Mason University

Racial Discrimination

Social Issues

U.S.

President Donald Trump&#8217;s Education Department opened an <a href="https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-opens-foreign-funding-investigation-university-of-michigan">investigation</a> into the University of Michigan&#8217;s foreign funding on Tuesday, weeks after two Chinese nationals with ties to the university were charged by the Department of Justice for smuggling biohazards into the United States.
Michigan has a &#8220;history of downplaying its vulnerabilities to malign foreign influence&#8221; and &#8220;recent reports reveal that UM’s research laboratories remain vulnerable to sabotage,&#8221; according to the Education Department&#8217;s Office of General Counsel (OGC) Chief Investigative Counsel Paul Moore. The Department of Education said that it will look into whether UM is in compliance with federal law after &#8220;a review of the university’s foreign reports revealed inaccurate and incomplete disclosures.&#8221;
&#8220;Unfortunately, tens of millions of dollars in foreign funding in UM’s disclosure reports have been reported in an untimely manner and appear to erroneously identify some of UM’s foreign funders as ‘nongovernmental entities,’ even though the foreign funders seem to be directly affiliated with foreign governments,&#8221; Moore said. &#8220;OGC will vigorously investigate this matter to ensure that the American people know the true scope of foreign funding and influence on our campuses.”
The Education Department is demanding that UM hand over tax records, documents, and lists of all gifts detailing any agreement with foreign governments within 30 days. The Trump administration also wants the names and contact information &#8220;of all university research personnel and contract personnel, undergraduate and graduate, involved in bilateral or multilateral research collaborations with non-U.S. research institutions.&#8221;
&#8220;Today’s investigation into UM reflects the Trump Administration’s ongoing efforts to hold colleges and universities accountable for failing to comply with federal disclosure laws on foreign funding, consistent with President Trump’s Executive Order on Transparency Regarding Foreign Influence at American Universities,&#8221; the department stated.
Last month, two Chinese scholars at the university were <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alarming-pattern-another-chinese-national-arrested-for-smuggling-biological-materials-into-u-s">arrested</a> and charged by the DOJ for attempting to smuggle “biological materials” that could potentially wipe out crops into a laboratory at Michigan. The DOJ said the arrests are &#8220;part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security.&#8221; Michigan, which <a href="https://research.umich.edu/news-and-issues/research-annual-reports/fy24-research-annual-report/fy24-news-release/">boasts</a> of being one of the top public research schools in the world, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/university-policies-under-review-after-chinese-researchers-charged-with-smuggling-biohazards?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=University+Policies+Under+Review+After+Chinese+Researchers+Charged+With+Smuggling+Biohazards">said</a> last month that it was “actively reviewing all relevant policies” after the arrests of the Chinese nationals.
FBI Director Kash Patel <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/feds-arrest-chinese-scholar-for-attempting-to-smuggle-pathogen-used-for-agroterrorism-into-u-s">called</a> the arrests &#8220;a sobering reminder that the CCP is working around the clock to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate American institutions and target our food supply, which would have grave consequences… putting American lives and our economy at serious risk.&#8221;
Earlier this year, UM ended its partnership with the Chinese Shanghai Jiao Tong University over national security concerns after the FBI <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/02/us/5-chinese-nationals-charged-with-covering-up-midnight-visit-to-michigan-military-site">said</a> that five Chinese UM students attempted to mislead investigators about a suspicious late-night trip they took to a Michigan military base in 2023.

Michigan

Trump Admin Probes University’s Foreign Funding After Chinese Biohazard Smuggling Arrests

Communist China

Department of Education

Investigation

Trump Administration

University of Michigan

A 12-year-old British girl was removed from her class and her father was called after she simply wore a British flag dress on her school’s culture day.
“’Straight A’ student Courtney Wright wore the Spice Girls-esque dress and wrote a piece about British history and traditions as part of the celebrations on Friday,” The Telegraph <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/07/15/schoolgirl-punished-for-wearing-union-flag-dress/">reported</a>. Informed her dress was “unacceptable” at Bilton School in Rugby, Warks, Wright was told to wait in an office for her father, Stuart Field, he said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Courtney Wright a Grade A student went to her Bilton School on Culture Day in a Union Jack dress. She had also prepared a short essay on what being British means. The head sent her to sit in reception.
He father added: &#8220;She was told she wasn’t allowed in school with the dress on… <a href="https://t.co/npNu72llqe">pic.twitter.com/npNu72llqe</a>
— David Atherton (@DaveAtherton20) <a href="https://twitter.com/DaveAtherton20/status/1945013567352111403?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“Courtney was so embarrassed and couldn’t understand what she’d done wrong,” Field stated. “She should not be made to feel embarrassed about being British. And she shouldn’t be punished for celebrating being British – nobody else I’ve spoken to can quite get their heads around it.”
“Somebody at the school has politicized a Union Jack dress even though that was clearly not Courtney’s intent,” he continued. “Courtney didn’t do anything to be political. It’s about being British, the Spice Girls and even the freedom at being able to wear a dress. This is just what being British means to her.”
The school had sent a permission letter to parents, explaining that the “culture day” was “designed to promote inclusion, understanding, and appreciation of different backgrounds, traditions and heritages.”
Field claimed that other pupils with St. George’s flags and Welsh flags were stopped from entering the school.
“It’s the school who have made it political and it went against everything the event was being held for. All the kids there are British in my eyes, I like to think I’m a tolerant person but this was just not right. I wanted an answer as to why they thought this was acceptable – and nobody could give me a straight answer, I wanted to know how they had justified it. I spoke to her head of year, and he said he wasn’t the best person to talk to about it, so I can only assume he didn’t really agree with it either. It obviously came from above him but I don’t know for sure who made the decision,” he concluded.
Courtney Wright said teachers informed her that “only other cultures were allowed to celebrate,” adding that she “felt really embarrassed” and teachers “point blank refused” to let her read her speech about British culture. “They didn’t want to hear it at all,” she said. “My speech was about diversity and all the traditions that we have in Britain – our politeness, our humor, we drink tea, we talk about the weather a lot and we like rugby and football. The school has since apologized. Even though the school has suggested reading my speech I don’t think I want to after how they embarrassed and upset me.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The school that sent home a 12-year-old girl for wearing a Union Jack dress (<a href="https://twitter.com/BiltonSchool?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BiltonSchool</a>) has also been pushing dangerous gender ideology on its young students.
Our children are being taught by activists, rather than educators. <a href="https://t.co/tSdBojPv1v">pic.twitter.com/tSdBojPv1v</a>
— James Esses (@JamesEsses) <a href="https://twitter.com/JamesEsses/status/1945087651293397119?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Stowe Valley Multi Academy Trust issued a <a href="https://www.stowevalleymat.com/">statement</a> regarding the incident:
<blockquote>
At Bilton School, we are proud of the diversity of our students and the rich heritage they bring to our community. We are committed to fostering an environment where every pupil feels respected, valued, and included.
On Friday 11th July, an incident occurred during our Culture Celebration Day that caused considerable upset to one of our pupils, her family, and members of the wider community. We deeply regret the distress this has caused and offer our sincere and unreserved apologies.
We have since spoken directly with the pupil and her family to listen to their concerns and reflect on how this could have been handled better. We are committed to learning from this experience and ensuring that every student feels recognized and supported when expressing pride in their heritage.
As a school, we are reviewing our policies and strengthening staff training to ensure our practices reflect our values of inclusion, respect, and understanding for all.
</blockquote>

Spice Girls Reunion – Photocall

12-Year-Old Girl Removed From Class Over British Flag Outfit On Culture Day

British

United Kingdom

World

The Supreme Court decided Monday that President Donald Trump can go ahead with dismantling the Education Department in the latest victory for the administration at the high court.
The court voted 6-3 along ideological lines to block a federal judge&#8217;s order to reinstate about 1,400 employees who were fired in mass layoffs at the Education Department earlier this year.
In March, Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-signs-order-dismantling-department-of-education" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signed</a> an executive order dismantling the Department of Education, following through on a key campaign promise to strengthen parental rights and improve academic outcomes across the country.
Also that month, Education Secretary Linda McMahon laid off about half of her department&#8217;s workforce.
The administration was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/judge-blocks-dismantling-of-education-department-orders-fired-workers-back">hit</a> with two lawsuits, one filed by a pair of Massachusetts school districts and the American Federation of Teachers union, and the other filed by 21 Democratic attorneys general.
In May, U.S. District Judge Myong Joun in Boston <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/22/politics/education-department-judge-ruling">blocked</a> the administration’s order and said the fired employees must be allowed to return to work.
His ruling is now on hold while the legal challenge continues, but the administration is cleared to proceed with the layoffs for now.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24a1203_pol1.pdf">wrote</a> a dissent accusing the conservative justices of making an &#8220;indefensible&#8221; decision, arguing that Trump is trying to illegally shutter the department without congressional approval.
To eliminate the Department of Education outright, Trump would need an act of Congress, but his executive order dismantles the department as much as possible in the meantime.
&#8220;When the Executive publicly announces its intent to break the law, and then executes on that promise, it is the Judiciary’s duty to check that lawlessness, not expedite it,&#8221; Sotomayor wrote.
&#8220;The majority is either willfully blind to the implications of its ruling or naive, but either way the threat to our Constitution’s separation of powers is grave,&#8221; the liberal justice wrote.
The other two liberal justices, Ketanji Brown Jackson and Elena Kagan, joined Sotomayor&#8217;s dissent.
“Everybody knows it’s right. The Democrats know it’s right,” Trump said just before signing the order. “We’re going to be returning education, very simply, back to the states where it belongs, and this is a very popular thing to do, but much more importantly, it’s a common sense thing to do, and it’s going to work. Absolutely, it’s going to work.”
Critics have <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-signs-order-dismantling-department-of-education">pointed</a> out that the Education Department doesn’t do much educating. Though it spends $80 billion in taxpayer dollars each year, it has no say over public school curriculums, which are decided at the state and local levels. Instead, it doles out $18.4 billion annually for Title I, the low-income school district program, and $15.5 billion for special education. It also enforces certain Title IX civil rights laws and sets the rules for colleges to participate in the $1.6 trillion federal student loan program.
Under the Trump administration, the Education Department also <a href="https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-cuts-over-600-million-divisive-teacher-training-grants" target="_blank" rel="noopener">terminated</a> over $600 million in grants for training teachers in “divisive ideologies” including social justice activism, anti-racism, and recruiting teachers based on race.
Frustration with public schools reached a boiling point over the last several years. During the pandemic, parents pleaded with schools to open the classrooms and stop requiring face masks on children. After COVID, parents complained of crippling learning loss, schools hiding children’s gender identity changes, and teachers pushing controversial ideologies like Critical Race Theory.

TOPSHOT-US-POLITICS-TRUMP-INAUGURATION

Supreme Court Greenlights Trump’s Education Department Layoffs

Donald Trump

Supreme Court

Harvard University is reportedly considering a new center for conservative scholarship amid criticism from the Trump administration that the school has drifted too far to the Left.
The Ivy League school has mulled starting a program for conservative scholarship for several years, but now the idea is gaining momentum, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/us-news/education/harvard-conservative-scholarship-center-trump-attacks-a187242a">according</a> to The Wall Street Journal.
The center could cost as much as $1 billion, and Harvard has already discussed the idea with potential donors, the Journal reported.
A Harvard spokesman said the school is ramping up work to set up such a center.
The program would “promote and support viewpoint diversity” and “will ensure exposure to the broadest ranges of perspectives on issues, and will not be partisan, but rather will model the use of evidence-based, rigorous logic and a willingness to engage with opposing views,” Harvard&#8217;s spokesman told the outlet.
If it takes shape, Harvard&#8217;s new center could potentially be modeled after Stanford’s Hoover Institution, which promotes personal liberty and limited government and is nonpartisan but widely viewed as conservative. Ronald Reagan was the Hoover Institution&#8217;s first honorary fellow.
However, the Trump administration would not necessarily view a new center purportedly for conservative thought as a significant step, the Journal reported, citing a person familiar with the administration&#8217;s perspective.
Harvard leaders&#8217; discussions about the potential center come amid a heated battle with the Trump administration over diversity, equity and inclusion practices as well as antisemitism.
In 2023, pro-Palestinian protests erupted on Harvard&#8217;s campus, sparking widespread backlash.
Harvard&#8217;s president at the time, Claudine Gay, was called to testify in front of Congress about the school&#8217;s response to antisemitism on campus. Her testimony was criticized after she <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ny-post-says-harvards-lawyer-contacted-them-for-looking-into-plagiarism-claims">hedged</a> on saying whether calling for the genocide of Jews violated the university&#8217;s codes of conduct.
The Trump administration has pulled billions in federal funds from the school, threatened Harvard&#8217;s tax-exempt status, and moved to block the school from enrolling foreign students.
Harvard is suing, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/harvard-sues-after-trump-admin-blocks-university-from-admitting-foreign-students">claiming</a> the administration is violating its First Amendment rights and trying to &#8220;control Harvard’s governance, curriculum, and the ‘ideology’ of its faculty and students.&#8221;
This week, the administration also threatened Harvard&#8217;s accreditation, accusing the school of violating federal discrimination law by failing to protect Jewish students from antisemitic harassment.
If Harvard were to lose its accreditation, it would also lose access to federal student aid, typically an existential event for universities that leads to their shuttering.
Harvard&#8217;s accreditation is handled by the New England Commission of Higher Education, which is not controlled by the government, but Education Secretary Linda McMahon sent the commission a firm letter about the issue.
&#8220;By allowing anti-Semitic harassment and discrimination to persist unchecked on its campus, Harvard University has failed in its obligation to students, educators, and American taxpayers,&#8221; McMahon wrote.
She added that the Education Department expects the commission to keep the administration &#8220;fully informed of its efforts to ensure that Harvard is in compliance with federal law and accreditor standards.&#8221;

Students Hold ‘No Justice Walkout’ Amid Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

Harvard Weighs New Conservative Center As Trump Targets School: Report

Harvard

Harvard University

The Department of Education is ending a Clinton-era rule allowing illegal aliens access to federally funded tuition programs.
<a href="https://dailycaller.com/2025/07/10/exclusive-trumps-ed-dept-ends-free-tuition-for-illegals/">According</a> to The Daily Caller, the Trump administration argues that the policy, which funds career, technical, and adult education programs, violates the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). The Education Department notified postsecondary education programs that the rule would no longer apply and declared that providers have “obligations to verify the eligibility of participants.”
This was one of <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/07/taxpayer-funded-benefits-are-for-american-citizens-not-illegals/">several</a> such moves the White House announced today. The Department of Health and Human Services &#8220;is restricting illegal aliens from 13 additional public programs, including Head Start,&#8221; while the Labor Department &#8220;is barring illegal aliens from accessing federal workforce development resources and grants.&#8221;
According to a White House fact sheet, the cuts save &#8220;roughly $40 billion in benefits for American citizens, overturns decades of bureaucratic defiance and builds on President Trump’s executive order directing an END to the subsidization of open borders.&#8221;
“Past presidents sat by and allowed illegal aliens to steal public benefits at the expense of hardworking American taxpayers — that ends now,&#8221; White House Assistant Press Secretary Taylor Rogers told The Daily Wire. &#8220;Under President Trump, it’s America first always.”
PRWORA previously exclusively allocated the use of federal funds to American citizens, permanent residents, and a small category of “qualified aliens” (e.g., refugees, asylees). However, the Clinton administration exempted postsecondary programs from the rule. The Trump Education Department stated that the exemption “mischaracterized the law by creating artificial distinctions between federal benefit programs based upon the method of assistance.”
In line with PRWORA, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon <a href="https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-ends-taxpayer-subsidization-of-postsecondary-education-illegal-aliens">said</a> if the federal government is going to fund postsecondary education programs, it “should benefit American citizens, not illegal aliens.”
“Under President Trump’s leadership, hardworking American taxpayers will no longer foot the bill for illegal aliens to participate in our career, technical, or adult education programs or activities,” she said. “The Department will ensure that taxpayer funds are reserved for citizens and individuals who have entered our country through legal means who meet federal eligibility criteria.”
The Trump administration has been cracking down on states that provide benefits to illegals in education.
On June 30, it announced the revocation of nearly $7 billion in federal grants, part of which went toward teaching English as a second language. The administration argued that the money was being used to push a “radical left wing agenda.”
Despite threats from the administration, some schools continue to provide benefits for illegals and protect them from deportation.
The Education Department’s new interpretation of the Clinton-era rule will take effect on August 9, 2025.

Department Of Education Plans To Lay Off Half Of Its Staff

Trump’s Dept Of Education Shuts Door On Free Tuition For Illegals

Bill Clinton

illegal alien

illegal immigrants

Illegals

Politics

Another day, another far-Left street protest.
It gets hard to keep up with the current “thing” as activists switch out causes like the average person changes underwear. Last month’s pro-Palestine protest is yesterday’s anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) protest is today’s pro-Iran protest.
But the issue is never the issue. The issue is the revolution.
Even more concerning is how K-12 schools have been infiltrated by organizations to serve as fertile recruiting and training grounds for the next generation of far-Left activists.
Leveraging (liberated) ethnic studies courses as an access point, these outside groups hide behind “history” and “culture” to advance their radical ideology and recruit students and staff into their ranks.
School districts, in order to comply with California’s Assembly Bill 101 (2021) which mandates that students in the class of 2029-30 complete one semester of ethnic studies, have been hiring far-Left organizations to assist in developing and implementing these course curriculums, as well as running professional development trainings and conferences for teachers.
For example, an early July <a href="https://www.xicanxinstitute.org/summer-2025">ethnic studies conference</a> in Arizona features a “Pre-Institute Field Day on the Border” which includes “visiting a desert surveillance tower with local organizers.” The participants will “examine how the same technologies are used against Palestinians.”
On May 13, 2025, Stockton Unified School District’s board <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/ca/susd/Board.nsf/goto?open&amp;id=DFJRPV6F023F">approved</a> spending $28,000 to send ten ethnic studies educators to attend the institute.
One of the institute’s <a href="https://www.instagram.com/xitotucson/p/DKk82TWSPMe/">sessions</a>, titled “Education as a Front, A Weapon &amp; A Tool,” includes panelists such as the chair of the Association of Raza Educators (ARE) and co-founder of <a href="https://www.liberatedethnicstudies.org/guadalupe-carrasco-cardona.html">Liberated Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum Consortium</a> (LESMC), and the director of Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC).
According to the description on Instagram, the “panel of educators and organizers will share tactics on how we can join forces by highlighting their work in the streets and in the schools, and help us identify critical fronts for cross movement solidarity.”
Both ARE and AROC openly engage in far-Left street activism. ARE’s Instagram is filled with protest propaganda, including a February 23, 2023, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/raza_educators_la/reel/DGa7kIVvqKw/?api=Selesaikan+latihan+online+untuk+menghasilkan+uang%E3%80%90GB777.BET%E3%80%91.dprv&amp;hl=zh-cn">post</a> which shows members of ARE following ICE agents to their “home base.”
Additionally, AROC helped organize the blockade of the <a href="https://www.ktvu.com/news/pro-palestine-protesters-shut-down-bay-bridge-during-apec-summit">Bay Bridge</a> in 2023, and <a href="https://www.araborganizing.org/page/port-of-oakland-shutdown/">boasts</a> about shutting down the Port of Oakland in 2024 in support of Palestine.
In 2023, San Francisco Unified School District <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/ca/sfusd/Board.nsf/goto?open&amp;id=CU2NLP607BD5">approved</a> a four year agreement with AROC to provide “workshops in classrooms related to leadership development and cultural empowerment.” AROC is a <a href="https://www.tides.org/partner/arab-resource-organizing-center-aroc/">fiscal project</a> of the Tides Foundation.
Not only are teachers being trained to advance far-Left activism, but the ideology has been embedded in ethnic studies curriculums, including how students are graded.
On June 18, 2025, Carlsbad Unified School District’s board <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/ca/cusd/Board.nsf/goto?open&amp;id=DH9QS96AAC48">approved</a> a year-long elective ethnic studies course which includes units on studying and engaging in activism. Grading rubrics included in the draft document reveal that students are assessed on how well they advocate for “justice in speech and perspective” and recognize “equity as essential.”
In other words, students are taught to identify oppression and injustice (critical consciousness) and to act on it (praxis).
<a href="https://www.newsmax.com/politics/critical-competency-consciousness/2023/12/07/id/1145144/">Critical consciousness</a>, a primary concept in ethnic studies, teaches students to view everything using an oppressor — oppressed binary lens. The goal is to get the youth to constantly seek out new social justice causes to which they can attach themselves.
For example, a 2023 Pajaro Valley Unified School District board <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/ca/pvusd/Board.nsf/files/CSZQCT67A8B9/$file/June%2028%20(23)%20Board%20Slides_%20CRE%20(1).pdf">presentation</a> reveals how the district integrated into its “Ethnic Literature and Studies “ course an “Ethnic Studies Praxis Story Plot” that replaces a traditional plot diagram with one steeped in critical consciousness. Students are taught to read stories in a circular fashion, moving from exposing the problem and recognizing the oppressed and oppressor classes, to “resistance and revolution” and how to apply the lessons to their own social justice activism.
Instead of seeking out meaningful resolutions and solutions, these courses, such as in Carlsbad and Parajo Valley schools, create perpetual social justice activists who bounce from one cause to the next in an effort to tear down the “oppressive” system and foment “revolution.”
While far-Left ethnic studies consultants make millions in consulting fees to advance their anti-Western Civilization ideology in schools, they are simultaneously turning K-12 students into the next generation of campus and street revolutionaries.
As liberated ethnic studies expands its tentacles across the country, parents, board members, administrators, teachers, and policymakers must grapple with this destructive ideology masquerading as “culture” and “history.”
The metastasis of these far-Left recruiting and training programs in our K-12 schools must be stopped.
American families deserve schools that teach children to read, write, and do math at the highest of standards — not indoctrination into social justice activism.
* * *
Rhyen Staley is the Research Director for Defending Education. He holds a master&#8217;s degree in elementary education and has over a decade of classroom experience in both public and private schools. He has over 25 years of volleyball coaching experience from Women’s Division I down to junior high.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

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The Revolution Will Be Graded: How Radical Activists Infiltrate K–12 Education

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The Department of Homeland Security <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/07/09/dhs-sends-administrative-subpoenas-harvard-university">announced</a> on Wednesday that it is sending administrative subpoenas to Harvard University, forcing the Ivy League school to share &#8220;relevant information&#8221; on foreign students.
The DHS accused Harvard of &#8220;repeatedly&#8221; refusing to cooperate with the Trump administration&#8217;s &#8220;non-coercive requests to hand over the required information for its Student Visitor and Exchange Program certification.&#8221; The administration wants Harvard to hand over documents and communications related to the enforcement of immigration laws on campus, dating back to January 1, 2020, citing &#8220;allegations of disciplinary disparity involving nonimmigrant students.&#8221;
“We tried to do things the easy way with Harvard. Now, through their refusal to cooperate, we have to do things the hard way,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. “Harvard, like other universities, has allowed foreign students to abuse their visa privileges and advocate for violence and terrorism on campus. If Harvard won’t defend the interests of its students, then we will.”
The Trump administration has been engaged in a months-long dispute with Harvard over international students on its campus, with President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/an-unacceptable-risk-trump-signs-proclamation-to-stop-foreign-students-from-enrolling-at-harvard?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=%E2%80%98An+Unacceptable+Risk%E2%80%99%3A+Trump+Signs+Proclamation+To+Stop+Foreign+Students+From+Enrolling+At+Harvard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">moving</a> to halt the Ivy League school&#8217;s enrollment of students from foreign countries last month. During the 2024-2025 academic year, foreign students made up 27% of Harvard&#8217;s student body.
In May, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ordered the department to terminate Harvard&#8217;s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification. Noem <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/06/23/kristi-noem-harvard-foreign-students-dhs-restriction/">accused</a> Harvard of &#8220;shirking&#8221; its requirements to comply with federal oversight in order to maintain certification.
&#8220;Other universities and academic institutions that are asked to submit similar information should take note of Harvard’s actions, and the repercussions, when considering whether or not to comply with similar requests,&#8221; the DHS added in a press release issued on Wednesday.
The Trump administration also claims that Harvard allowed antisemitism and &#8220;hostile foreign influence to fester on campus.&#8221; Last month, the president <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/an-unacceptable-risk-trump-signs-proclamation-to-stop-foreign-students-from-enrolling-at-harvard?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=%E2%80%98An+Unacceptable+Risk%E2%80%99%3A+Trump+Signs+Proclamation+To+Stop+Foreign+Students+From+Enrolling+At+Harvard">said</a> that Harvard was refusing to comply with the federal government&#8217;s request to hand over data on “instances of misconduct and criminality committed by its foreign students,” calling Harvard’s refusal “an unacceptable risk.”
Along with the administration going after Harvard over its enrollment of foreign students, Trump has also stripped more than $2 billion in federal funding for the university over its diversity, equity, and inclusion programs and alleged failure to confront antisemitism on campus.
Hostility between the Trump administration and Harvard appeared to cool down in recent weeks, however. In a Truth Social post on June 20, Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-teases-mindbogglingly-historic-deal-with-harvard-they-have-acted-extremely-appropriately?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Teases+%E2%80%98Mindbogglingly+Historic%E2%80%99+Deal+With+Harvard%3A+%E2%80%98They+Have+Acted+Extremely+Appropriately%E2%80%99">teased</a> a &#8220;&#8216;mindbogglingly’ HISTORIC&#8221; deal with Harvard that would be announced “over the next week or so.” More than two weeks later, a deal has yet to be reached, but Trump said last Friday that he still believes the administration will &#8220;settle with Harvard.&#8221;
&#8220;They want to settle very badly,” he said, adding that the deal involves &#8220;a lot of money,&#8221; the Harvard Crimson <a href="https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2025/7/5/trump-says-probably-settle-harvard/">reported</a>.

Trump Admin Subpoenas Harvard Over Foreign Student Misconduct, Campus Radicalism

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Staff at one of America’s top public high schools appeared to have violated Virginia law by sharing its intellectual property with an organization that took millions of dollars from Chinese entities looking to “clone” the school, according to emails reviewed by The Daily Wire.  
New emails obtained by Defending Education show staff at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria collecting information on its textbooks and science labs to send to a Chinese company, as well as admissions from the school’s principal that previous intellectual property sharing had “violated state law.”
The school has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/virginia-school-system-sold-china-a-handbook-on-how-to-clone-americas-top-stem-school">faced criticism</a> for sharing its blueprints and curriculum with Chinese entities looking to replicate the school in China. The new emails shed more light on the lengths staff went to share information with the school’s “international partners&#8221; and reveal that state laws may have been broken in the process. 
In an August 21, 2019 email to staff, then Principal Ann Bonitatibus said that staff at the high school and the Thomas Jefferson Partnership Fund, a nonprofit supporting renovations at the school, appeared to break the law by selling its intellectual property.
The Thomas Jefferson Partnership Fund received $3.6 million between 2014 and 2021 from Chinese entities like the Ameson Foundation, which had a contract with the partnership fund to help China nearly identical schools. In May, Defending Education <a href="https://defendinged.org/defending-education-request-investigation-into-the-activities-of-the-thomas-jefferson-high-school-for-science-and-technology-partnership-fund-inc/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">filed</a> a complaint with the IRS demanding an investigation into the fund over its foreign funding. 
“[Thomas Jefferson Partnership Fund] staff shall not request from, or compensate, [high school staff] staff for ‘deliverables’ that replicate, mirror or otherwise transmit [Fairfax County Public Schools] intellectual property,” the principal <a href="https://defendinged.org/incidents/thomas-jefferson-high-school-principal-appeared-unfazed-that-school-possibly-broke-state-law-by-partnering-with-china-affiliated-groups/">wrote</a>. “In the summer of 2017, I became aware of HSTI contracts that did such and immediately ended the practice and notified you it violated state law. I have consistently shared with Board leadership that FCPS/TJ staff cannot sell our brand or intellectual property which includes curriculum design, assessments, program design, etc.”
Fairfax County Public Schools did not respond to requests for comment for clarification on what actions were taken in response to the purported violations of state law. 
That came after Bonitatibus said that high school staff were not allowed to use Fairfax County Public School resources during their contractual time to do work for the Thomas Jefferson Partnership Fund. She said that a staff member was previously found to be doing work for the partnership fund without the knowledge of school leadership. 
In the same email, Bonitatibus seemed to shrug off concerns about the situation. 
“As stated during our meeting, I believe all parties are acting with good intentions. It can be difficult to navigate the complex scenarios that arise, and we’re here to partner with you and work together to benefit the TJ staff, students and broader community,&#8221; she wrote. 
In light of the alleged legal violations, she asked that any materials gathered for Shirble HK, a Chinese department store incorporated in the Cayman Islands, be run through her. Shirble gave $1.5 million to the partnership fund between 2016-2021. 
“As a result, I respectfully request that copies of any materials generated by our current or prior teachers this past summer 2019 for Shirble be provided to [redacted] and me for review,” Bonitatibus wrote. 
Shirble has <a href="https://freebeacon.com/national-security/top-us-high-school-traded-curriculum-for-donations-in-secretive-business-deals-with-ccp-tied-groups-irs-complaint-says/">troubling ties</a> to the Chinese Communist Party. Yang Xiangbo, the company’s former chair, has attended meetings at the United Front’s Chinese People’s Political Consultive Conference and previously said that CCP officials stopped by the stores &#8220;to guide the work and put forward ardent expectations for Shirble.&#8221;
Other emails obtained by Defending Education show that high school staff compiled detailed information on the school’s research labs and curriculum for Shirble. For example, on June 10, 2019, an employee of the partnership fund emailed a teacher at the high school saying that Shirble wanted to know “about ALL our Senior Research Labs.”
“I have a special request for you. Our current International Partners, Shirble, have specifically asked to know more about ALL our Senior Research Labs as they are going to work on building some of their own,” the employee wrote, adding that Shirble wanted the “curriculum design, equipment needed, lab layout, and possible senior work projects for their own version of the lab.” 
The employee told the teacher that the partnership fund would pay the teacher “at a rate of Pay Band 11 for up to 15 hours total of work.” By August 15, 2019, the teacher had responded and provided a detailed document on course structure, equipment used, and lab policies. 
<div id="attachment_943669" style="width: 1456px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-943669" class="size-full wp-image-943669" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-07-at-11.52.24%E2%80%AFAM.png" alt="" width="1446" height="1164" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-07-at-11.52.24%E2%80%AFAM.png 1446w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-07-at-11.52.24%E2%80%AFAM-300x241.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-07-at-11.52.24%E2%80%AFAM-716x576.png 716w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-07-at-11.52.24%E2%80%AFAM-768x618.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1446px) 100vw, 1446px" />Document compiled for Shirble.</div>
Earlier in the year, a representative from the partnership fund requested that the school provide a list of all the textbooks it uses for Shirble. 
“One of our international partners, Shirble, has asked for a list of text books that we use for certain specific classes,” the representative <a href="https://defendinged.org/incidents/fairfax-county-public-schools-provided-china-affiliated-organization-with-curriculum-information-used-for-students/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>. “Do we have a main list anywhere I can access? Or is it best for me to send you the list? Or go through Dept heads?”
In response, assistant principal Volita Russell began circulating requests to staff to compile the textbook lists. Lists of texts used for English, biology, chemistry, physics, geosystems, health, French, math, computer science, and history were all gathered. 
Russell indicated in an email that she would be getting the sharing of textbooks approved, but it is unclear if the lists were ever sent to Shirbel. 
Defending Education Vice President Sarah Parshall Perry told The Daily Wire that Fairfax County Public Schools has a “history of malfeasance” including its sharing of school materials with Chinese entities.  
“What&#8217;s more, is that TJ&#8217;s principal appeared to acknowledge that the school broke state law by providing China-affiliated groups with its intellectual property,&#8221; she said. &#8220;As if that wasn&#8217;t enough, further communications revealed through our public records requests indicate that TJ&#8217;s relationship with Shirble Department Store Holdings in China included the apparent provision of specific curricular inclusions (including textbooks) for use by Shirble.&#8221;

Thomas Jefferson High School admitted less than 10 black students to the Class of 2024 sparking outrage and debate

Nation’s Top Public High School ‘Violated’ Law By Sharing Info With Chinese Group, Emails Show

Fairfax County

It’s no secret that history’s oldest prejudice is on the rise in the Big Apple. In 2024, the NYPD <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-nyc-jews-targeted-in-hate-crimes-more-than-all-other-groups-combined-in-2024/">recorded</a> an antisemitic attack every 25 hours. All in all, there were 345 antisemitic hate crimes, which constituted roughly 54% of all hate crimes reported in the city.
When it comes to combating these trends, the city’s Department of Education (DOE) has been missing in action. Parents, teachers, and students have repeatedly complained that the city’s public schools have done <a href="https://mjhnyc.org/press/jewish-advocates-demand-policy-changes-to-combat-antisemitism-at-nyc-public-high-schools/">very little</a> to address antisemitic incidents on their campuses.
Moreover, antisemitic propaganda — including an article from Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan declaring that “Jewish behavior has ill-affected Black people and others” — has <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/05/31/us-news/nyc-teachers-getting-anti-israel-literature-in-doe-schools/">dripped</a> into school newsletters, materials, and mass emails at least five times over the past couple of months.
However, the DOE won’t sit on the sidelines for much longer. Its latest initiative? A new Jewish addition to the existing Hidden Voices social studies curriculum, which <a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2025/06/16/natalia-mehlman-petrzela-discusses-jewish-america-history-fighting-antisemitism-in-hidden-voices-curriculum/">focuses</a> on “centering diverse historical figures left out of typical textbooks.” In this case, that includes profiles of Jewish figures like WNBA player Nancy Lieberman and sex-positive therapist and talk-show host Ruth Westheimer. These profiles are intended to provide role models for Jewish students and introduce others to Jews’ contributions to society.
But don’t be fooled. This isn’t a serious attempt to battle antisemitism in New York City. It’s just a shallow gesture that lumps Jews into the very DEI bubble that helped create this problem to begin with. While Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives are often well-intentioned, this won’t protect the city’s Jews, it’ll just paint a bigger target on their backs.
Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, the historian behind NYC Public Schools&#8217; &#8220;Hidden Voices&#8221; social studies curriculum made it clear that her &#8220;Jewish American&#8221; history segment is an identity-based curriculum — she <a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2025/06/16/natalia-mehlman-petrzela-discusses-jewish-america-history-fighting-antisemitism-in-hidden-voices-curriculum/">told</a> Chalkbeat New York that &#8220;these materials push educators and students to think about who identity-based curricula are for,&#8221; and that she hopes the program &#8220;invigorates [students] to commit to a pluralism and universalism that I personally think is the beating heart of a healthy community.&#8221;
Simply put, Petrzela argues that by lumping Jews — who she calls a “tiny minority” — in with other DEI groups, we can all learn more about each other.
Yet Petrzela’s approach ignores DEI’s fatal flaw. Most DEI programs <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Pedagogy-Oppressed-Anniversary-Paulo-Freire/dp/0826412769">root their philosophy</a> in an oppressor vs oppressed binary, where the oppressed can do no wrong and the oppressors should be treated with contempt. This binary is especially dangerous for Jews because they rose from poverty and persecution around the world to become one of the most successful and enduring subgroups in the United States. Therefore, many DEI advocates, whether they know it or not, <a href="https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/the-dei-complex-will-never-protect-jews">relegate</a> Jews into the “oppressor” category.
New York City’s schools are no exception — after all, state-level officials are <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/04/06/new-york-schools-dei-trump/">refusing to part</a> with DEI, and the district’s <a href="https://www.studentpathways.nyc/">Office of Student Pathways</a>, which infamously sent a <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=office+of+student+pathways+nyc+jews&amp;sca_esv=ccb8066356fd07b7&amp;sxsrf=AE3TifOxZmNlWkSUmgiFYTMS0tj3sFta0A%3A1750776477842&amp;ei=nbpaaLyZM5yOur8PsPTkyQk&amp;ved=0ahUKEwj826vQpoqOAxUch-4BHTA6OZkQ4dUDCBA&amp;uact=5&amp;oq=office+of+student+pathways+nyc+jews&amp;gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiI29mZmljZSBvZiBzdHVkZW50IHBhdGh3YXlzIG55YyBqZXdzSOgIUJwDWJcIcAF4AJABAJgBnwGgAc4DqgEDNC4xuAEDyAEA-AEBmAIEoALRAsICChAAGLADGNYEGEfCAgsQABiABBiRAhiKBcICBhAAGBYYHsICCBAAGIAEGKIEwgIIEAAYogQYiQXCAgUQIRigAZgDAIgGAZAGCJIHAzMuMaAH_Q-yBwMyLjG4B88CwgcDMi4yyAcD&amp;sclient=gws-wiz-serp#:~:text=NYC%20public%20schools,news%20%E2%80%BA%20nyc%2Dpubli...">newsletter</a> decrying the “genocide” in Gaza back in April, often uses DEI rhetoric. 
These ideas cannot form the foundation of an effective &#8220;anti-antisemitism&#8221; plan. Institutions that hate Jews cannot teach people not to hate Jews.
The bigger problem? Even if the DEI apparatus were willing to give Jews a fair shake, this approach still wouldn’t be successful. Evidence <a href="https://aristotlefoundation.org/reality-check/what-dei-research-concludes-about-diversity-training-it-is-divisive-counter-productive-and-unnecessary/">suggests</a> that DEI training fails to stop bigotry or intolerance. Instead, “when people attempt to suppress unwanted thoughts, these thoughts are likely to subsequently reappear with even greater insistence than if they had never been suppressed.” In other words, if applied here, DEI won’t serve to educate antisemitism away — it could make the problem even worse.
Unfortunately, the problem exists regardless of the quality of the educational materials. Research <a href="https://www.the74million.org/article/kisida-bowen-can-we-educate-hate-away-new-study-of-students-holocaust-education-shows-its-possible-but-only-if-conditions-are-right/">indicates</a> that even when students have access to high-quality educational materials — like first-person accounts of the Holocaust — they don’t always become more tolerant of other people and cultures. In an <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/MFDZAWYKHJGI8EWQPY4N/full?target=10.1080/19345747.2019.1652712">experiment</a> involving the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Houston, some students left slightly less tolerant than when they came in.
If New York City continues on its current path, it may create the very thing it aims to destroy. Fighting antisemitism will require more than teaching children about Jews. It will require a school culture that shows zero tolerance for hatred based on religion, ethnicity, or any other immutable category — that means vigorous policing of social media apps within schools and effective discipline for students who engage in antisemitic activity.
What it should not include is DEI. Identity politics cannot and will not end the antisemitic wave in New York’s schools and streets.
* * *
Garion Frankel is a native of the New York metropolitan area and a Ph.D student in PK-12 educational leadership at Texas A&amp;M University. He is a Young Voices Middle East History and Peace Fellow, and his articles can be found in outlets like Newsweek, USA Today, and the Houston Chronicle.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

New York City Students Head Back To Class For First Day Of School

NYC Public Schools Think DEI Can Fix Antisemitism. It Won’t.

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Regents of the University of Michigan — who serve unpaid — now have 24-hour security because of threats and harassment from pro-Hamas factions.
UM Regents Jordan Acker, Mark Bernstein, and Sarah Hubbard told <a href="https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-859787">The Detroit News</a> that the university assigned them around-the-clock security after their residences were vandalized with pro-Hamas, anti-Israel messages.
“Since Nov. 17, 2023, our regents and executive officers have been subjected to extensive and targeted criminal acts, including vandalism of private residences and businesses,” University spokeswoman Colleen Mastony stated. “These incidents, detailed in a press release, underscore the unacceptable level of threats and harassment directed at our institution’s leaders and their families.”
“We have taken prudent steps to support our regents and executive officers and will continue to rely on our public safety team to continuously assess risk, consult with external law enforcement partners, and allocate resources commensurate with those assessments,” she added.
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“The three regents said they continue to get threats via email and social media, as recently as June 9,” The Detroit News reported, noting that in May 2024, activists erected tents on Regent Hubbard&#8217;s front lawn and left on her doorstep &#8220;scenes of genocide in Palestine.&#8221; Her Instagram account was tagged with the message, “Regents, respond to our demands by the end of your board meeting this Thursday.”
Last December, vandals targeted Regent Acker’s home. Acker, who has three young children, said he has been getting death threats as recently as June 9. Reacting to a jar of urine being thrown through one of his home’s windows, he said, &#8220;Any time your family is being attacked for who you are and for what you believe, I think that&#8217;s a pretty scary moment as an elected official, but it&#8217;s unfortunately the world that we live in these days.&#8221;
“It&#8217;s been really hard on them. It&#8217;s been really hard on my wife. It&#8217;s been really, really hard on my kids, especially my 10-year-old, who was woken up by the glass breaking,” Acker added.
The homes of former President Santa Ono and the university&#8217;s chief investment officer, Erik Lundberg, were vandalized last October. “In March, someone spray-painted ‘Free Palestine’ on the side of UM Provost Laurie McCauley&#8217;s Ann Arbor home,” The Detroit News noted.
“This is something that the university has decided, it&#8217;s important to provide this support to their leadership. So it&#8217;s the regents and it&#8217;s also a number of other leaders at the university that have experienced these threats,” Hubbard said. “I feel that I can have this civil debate with people who have a different opinion than I do, and so it&#8217;s too bad that it has ramped up to this point where we&#8217;re concerned for our safety. It&#8217;s not a concern I have every moment of every day, but it&#8217;s certainly something I worry about because we see it going beyond the vandalism in so many areas around the country and in the world, and we don&#8217;t want to suffer that same result.&#8221;

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