US universities brace for education policies overhaul under Trump

School initiatives focusing on diversity, equity, and inclusion are likely to be first on the chopping block.

President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly talked about shutting down the United States Department of Education. Vice President-elect JD Vance has called universities the “enemy” and “hostile institutions”.

And while Trump’s pick for education secretary, former wrestling executive Linda McMahon, stands out primarily for having no apparent experience in the field of education, advocates are anxiously waiting for what many believe will be an all-out war against universities under the incoming administration.

While the federal Department of Education has repeatedly been threatened, it is unlikely that the incoming Trump administration will be able to shut it down, as that would need congressional approval – including a supermajority in the Senate, which the Republicans do not have.

But the president-elect still has the ability to affect the education sector.

Trump has threatened to pull accreditation and federal funding from schools and colleges promoting “critical race theory, transgender insanity, and other inappropriate racial, sexual or political content”, as he put it. He has also pledged to ensure schools are “free from political meddling”.