Trump Education Department Cuts Funding to Anti-Racism Programs, Calls Them 'Divisive'

The Department of Education announced Monday that it is cutting $600 million in grants for teacher training programs that it says promote "divisive ideologies."

Among the topics the department has deemed divisive are anti-racism, critical race theory, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), social justice and white supremacy, according to the Department of Education.

The department cited examples from grant applications that required teachers to "take personal and institutional responsibility for systemic inequities" and encouraged them to "interrupt racial marginalization and oppression" in education.

The move follows broader efforts by the Trump administration to remove government funding from DEI programs and eliminate educational initiatives that emphasize race, equity and systemic injustice. The department has also slashed hundreds of millions in contracts from the Institute of Education Sciences, the agency responsible for national education research and assessments.

Critics of the funding cuts argue that they will weaken efforts to support marginalized students, while supporters say the programs promote activism over education.

"It's hard to overstate how radical these teacher trainings are — we are talking about forcing teachers to talk about their race at work, asking educators to 'take personal and institutional responsibility for systemic inequities,' promoting abolitionist teaching practices and defining equity as equal outcomes," Erika Sanzi of Parents Defending Education told The Hill.

"And not for nothing but all we see are declining outcomes for the students that these trainings purport to help most," Sanzi added, though specific data was not referenced.