Viewpoint: Project 2025 looks to dismantle public education
David James
Recently the National Republican Convention was held in Milwaukee. Many speeches described the objectives of the next Republican administration. One glaring omission, however, was their plan to eliminate Social Security and Medicare, and their goal of education. The reason is their plans are not popular. Their education plan, outlined in Project 2025, is divisive, backward, and contrary to the views of most Americans.
The chapter on education of Project 2025 explains why it’s backward. Republicans advocate a return to an American education system before Brown v. Board of Education. A time of segregation. A system where many students didn’t graduate from high school, public schools were inadequate, many teachers were ill-trained, and schools could discriminate against those who could attend.
A major reason for the surge in American global importance has been our ability to produce an educated populace. American expansion of public education has produced a well-educated citizenry that reduced crime, and improved public health and equity. Sputnik motivated us to improve our public schools, and arm students with critical thinking skills necessary to adapt to a changing and ever more complex world. Another Republican goal has been to ban books that youngsters read to prevent a “woke” mind.
The education plan of Project 2025 is to eliminate the US Department of Education and move education back to the states, where funding would be diverted to religious entities while reducing early childhood development.
Shutting down the Department of Education would enable religious doctrine to be taught in schools. This would mean the establishment of religion, or not allowing some children attendance or requiring teachers to have fundamental preparation. Project 2025 reveals how students would be taught WHAT to think, NOT TO think. The Department of Education advocates academic standards, promotes student achievement and ways for schools to improve, and ensures equal access to every student.
The GOP is counting on the fact that no one will read Project 2025. (44 pages long) Abolishing the Department of Education would take an act of Congress; however, Project 2025 would enable a President to defund it. What would remain would be a hollow shell that could only gather statistics to disseminate.
Since a major aim of the Education Department is to guarantee equal access to quality education, Project 2025 reveals a reason Republicans hate public education. It's about civil rights and an open marketplace of ideas. No more study of slavery or segregation, Japanese American internment, or treatment of early immigrants. It silences our history. No more reading George Orwell or Maya Angelou.
Project 2025 enables the privatization of public education and an end to programs and counseling that help marginalized youth. As a teacher of 40 years, I find this plan reprehensible and unacceptable.