Arguments begin Thursday in a New Hampshire court case involving President Donald Trump's demand that schools end diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in public schools or risk losing federal funding.
The New Hampshire case is one of several lawsuits contesting the administration's demands and seeking to determine if the federal government can withhold billions of federal dollars for schools to educate low-income students.
The National Education Association and the American Civil Liberties Union are suing the administration, accusing it of violating congressional regulations that say federal agencies cannot dictate matters of local instruction, The New York Times reported.
"This case is really about some fundamental failures of process at the Department of Education," said Sarah Hinger, a lawyer with the ACLU.
The Trump administration is arguing that the Supreme Court's 2023 decision overturning affirmative action in college admissions also applies to K-12 public schools, and the ruling "sets forth a framework" for the use of race in education, the Times reported.
"The Trump administration is trying to use a relatively narrow decision and turn it into a broad holding that brings about whatever it wishes," Justin Driver, a professor at Yale Law School and an expert on the Constitution and education, told the Times.
The administration has told schools they must sign by April 24 to show they are following antidiscrimination laws. The New Hampshire Department of Education has set an earlier deadline for schools, giving them until April 17 to submit the compliance form, New Hampshire Public Radio reported.
"The U.S. Department of Education's unclear ban on DEI undercuts our ability to adequately meet the needs of our students and overrides our communities' decision to uphold these values in our public schools," said Jay Badams, superintendent for New Hampshire's Hanover and Dresden schools, NHPR reported.
Title I is the program that provides federal funding programs for public schools aimed at supporting low-income students and improving their academic achievement.
It was reported last week that a group of mostly Democrat-led states is suing the Trump administration to access COVID-related funding for education.
California, New York, and Pennsylvania are among the states seeking to stop the administration from cutting off access to more than $1 billion in funding to address the long-term effects of the pandemic on K-12 students, according to multiple reports.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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