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Trump orders Education Department to guide states on use of federal funds for school choice • Louisiana Illuminator

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lailluminator.com – Shauneen Miranda – 2025-01-30 05:00:00

Trump orders Education Department to guide states on use of federal funds for school choice

by Shauneen Miranda, Louisiana Illuminator
January 30, 2025

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed executive orders Wednesday that prioritize school choice funding and seek to end what the administration sees as “radical indoctrination in K-12 schooling.”

Trump is carrying through on education-related campaign promises he made as part of his sweeping vision to “save American education.” These efforts mark the latest in a deluge of wide-ranging executive orders the president began signing since he took office last week.

One executive order directs the U.S. Education Department secretary “to issue guidance regarding how States can use Federal formula funds” to support K-12 school choice initiatives within the next two months.

Linda McMahon, Trump’s pick for Education secretary, has yet to sit before a Senate panel for a confirmation hearing.

McMahon — a former World Wrestling Entertainment executive, the prior head of the Small Business Administration during Trump’s first administration and a wealthy donor — could be pivotal to carrying out Trump’s sweeping education agenda.

The order also directs the Education secretary to “include education freedom as a priority in discretionary grant programs, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law.”

Trump is also tasking the Department of Health and Human Services with issuing guidance on how states receiving block grants “can use them to expand educational choice and support families who choose educational alternatives to governmental entities, including private and faith-based options.”

He is also requiring Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to review how any “military-connected families” could use Department of Defense funds to attend a school of their choice and must submit a plan to describe these mechanisms and the steps to implement them.

Trump is asking the same for the Department of the Interior — requiring that the agency’s next leader review how anyone eligible to attend a school within the Bureau of Indian Education can use federal funds to attend a school of their choosing.

Former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump’s pick to lead the department, appears to be on a smooth path to becoming the next Interior secretary.

‘Radical indoctrination’ in K-12 schools

Meanwhile, Trump signed a sweeping executive order that aims to bar federal funding for schools that teach “discriminatory equity ideology,” which the administration describes as “an ideology that treats individuals as members of preferred or disfavored groups, rather than as individuals, and minimizes agency, merit, and capability in favor of immoral generalizations.”

The order also requires the respective secretaries of Education; Defense; and Health and Human Services; to provide Trump with an “ending indoctrination strategy” in the next 90 days.

The plan would include recommendations for “eliminating Federal funding or support for illegal and discriminatory treatment and indoctrination in K-12 schools.”

Trump also signed another executive order Wednesday that takes additional measures to try to combat antisemitism on college campuses. 

Last updated 5:41 p.m., Jan. 29, 2025

Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com.

News from the South - Louisiana News Feed

Strong storms arrive Sunday morning

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www.youtube.com – WDSU News – 2025-04-05 06:34:36

SUMMARY: Strong storms are expected to hit Sunday morning, with coastal flooding possible. Tomorrow is designated a Weather Alert Day due to thunderstorms arriving around 6 a.m. The storms may include gusty winds, isolated tornadoes, and large hail. A cold front will bring cooler air by Tuesday, with morning temperatures dropping to around 39°F. Coastal flooding is a concern, and the day will be warm, breezy, and mostly cloudy. The storms are forecast to subside by noon, and while the afternoon will still be cloudy with some showers, drier conditions will return by Monday evening, followed by pleasant weather for the rest of the week.NG VERY GOOD TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. AS LONG AS YOU DON’T MIND IT. A LITTLE BIT CHILLY IN THE MORNING, 39 TUESDAY MORNING ON THE NORTH SHORE AFTERNOONS THOUGH. BACK TO 80

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Strong storms arrive Sunday morning

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Cloudy, windy, warm, then tracking Sunday storms

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www.youtube.com – WDSU News – 2025-04-04 18:15:15

SUMMARY: Today is warm and windy, with temperatures around 80°F, perfect for ongoing festivals like Volksfest and the Bucktown Seafood Festival. There’s no rain expected this evening, but some isolated showers are forecasted for the North Shore. A strong storm system is affecting the Southwestern US, bringing potential severe weather with a cold front arriving Saturday night into Sunday. Expect early morning storms on Sunday, mainly affecting the daylight hours, with risks of heavy rain and strong winds. Coastal flooding and small craft advisories are also in effect; no rain gear needed for today’s festivities.

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Meteorologist Devon Lucie shows you where the rain is out right now, then dives right into the weekend forecast showing you how cloudy, windy, and warm Saturday will be and where rain is possible, then tracks and times strong, possibly severe storms into Sunday showing you when storms are most likely, when they’re gone, what the most likely threat from severe weather will be, and how storms affect temperatures, then shows you how much cooler we get next week while finishing with your seven day forecast.

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As deadline approaches, Trump extends TikTok sell-by date

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lailluminator.com – Jacob Fischler – 2025-04-04 17:00:00

Sarah Baus of Charleston, S.C., holds a sign that reads "Keep TikTok" as she and other content creators Sallye Miley of Jackson, Mississippi, and Callie Goodwin of Columbia, S.C., stand outside the U.S. Supreme Court Building on Jan. 10, 2025, as the court hears oral arguments on whether to overturn or delay a law that could lead to a ban of TikTok in the U.S. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Sarah Baus of Charleston, S.C., holds a sign that reads “Keep TikTok” as she and other content creators Sallye Miley of Jackson, Mississippi, and Callie Goodwin of Columbia, S.C., stand outside the U.S. Supreme Court Building on Jan. 10, 2025, as the court hears oral arguments on whether to overturn or delay a law that could lead to a ban of TikTok in the U.S. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

President Donald Trump said Friday he would extend for 75 days Saturday’s deadline for Chinese company ByteDance to sell the short-video platform TikTok to a parent company based outside the Communist country.

A bipartisan law enacted last year requires TikTok to find a non-Chinese parent company or face a ban in the United States, where the social media giant says it has more than 150 million monthly users, by Saturday.

In a post to his platform Truth Social on Friday afternoon, Trump said negotiations have made “tremendous progress” but required more time to close. The post also promoted Trump’s imposition of additional tariffs on China this week.

“The Deal requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed, which is why I am signing an Executive Order to keep TikTok up and running for an additional 75 days,” he wrote.

“We hope to continue working in Good Faith with China, who I understand are not very happy about our Reciprocal Tariffs (Necessary for Fair and Balanced Trade between China and the U.S.A.!). This proves that Tariffs are the most powerful Economic tool, and very important to our National Security! We do not want TikTok to ‘go dark.’ We look forward to working with TikTok and China to close the Deal. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

A handful of massive U.S.-based companies – tech company Oracle, private equity firm Blackstone and retailers Amazon and Walmart – have reportedly expressed interest in buying TikTok. Several long-shot bidders have also made offers, according to reports.

The law requiring TikTok’s parent company to sell the app or lose access to the U.S. market received overwhelming bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress last year and President Joe Biden signed it as part of a larger legislative package in April 2024.

The app briefly went dark shortly before Trump’s inauguration, but the president signed an executive order on Jan. 20 directing the U.S. Justice Department to pause until April 5 enforcement of the law banning TikTok. 

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