School Districts are Defying, not Complying with Trump’s Executive Orders to Eliminate Destructive Ideology

President Donald Trump has issued several Executive Orders dealing with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Parental Rights, Gender issues, and Educational Freedom. Many report

the end of these harmful, woke programs and practices is a welcome relief. However, reality reveals ingrained bureaucrats are not complying but defying what Washington and many states are declaring. It is yet to be seen whether consequences for violators will be realized.

Education Executive Orders

Two Executive Orders (EO) specific to education are EO 14151: Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing and EO 14190: Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schools. There are others that directly or indirectly impact education, but these two are being defied.

The EO specific to DEI directs the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to “coordinate termination of all discriminatory programs, including illegal DEI and diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) mandates, policies, programs, preferences, and activities” with the Attorney General (AG) and Office of Personnel Management (OPM). This involves federal, state, and contractor entities who receive federal funding.

The indoctrination EO directs the Secretary of Education, Secretary of Defense, and Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit recommendations and a plan. The plan is for “(i) eliminating Federal funding or support for illegal and discriminatory treatment and indoctrination in K-12 schools, including based on gender ideology and discriminatory equity ideology and (ii) protecting parental rights …” as stipulated by law. The EO requires a summary and analysis regarding funding and processes to deal with violations.

The focus of these EOs is to protect children. Eliminating the woke ideology will bolster learning what is necessary for future employment and living a productive life, not distort biology and common sense.

Recently Reported Occurrences

EOs have been issued, but will bureaucrats comply? Will they shift their ideology to ensure children are receiving a quality education per state constitutions? Or will the status quo continue?

Brevard County School Board in Florida discussed a teacher who willfully continued to promote gender ideology without notifying parents or obtaining parental approval. This is a violation of district policy, Florida law, and federal executive orders. It’s reported the board voted not to renew her contract and the state is reviewing what action to take given her acknowledgement of the violation. Will the teacher’s license be revoked or merely allowed to move on, teach in another district, and continue to violate the law.

Virginia Beach School Board in Virginia voted on a resolution to end policy 5-4 eliminating DEI practices and comply with the Trump administrations certification requirements. The resolution also directed the superintendent to rename the DEI department to the Department of Opportunity and Achievement. After hearing public comments, the board voted to approve the adoption of the resolution. It’s unclear why renaming, not eliminating, the department was included. Will the same employees remain in their positions? Changing a name and not removing employees does not eradicate ideology, it merely perpetuates the status quo under a new marketing banner.

These occurrences are not isolated cases and should not surprise anyone. Expect more to be reported because truth is if non-compliance is found in one district, it is in other districts.

Don’t Make Idle Threats

The typical threat of noncompliance by the federal government is to withhold funding in the form of grants and contracts. States use the same threat when school districts choose to defy state laws. Unfortunately, threats are rarely acted upon. As parents know, when a child is told to “stop or else” and when the “or else” doesn’t happen, behavior does not change. Federal and state governments act in the same manner. They rarely, if ever, withhold funding. When a state does take action, the district makes corrections, the action is reversed, and funding is restored.

If real change is expected to shift this ideological madness, there needs to be real consequences. State and local school boards must wield their authority. Idle threats do not work. School districts must be fined and scaled back, administrators and teachers must be fired, and laws and policy must be enforced.

Author Karen Hiltz, EdD, is a speaker and author from Sebastian, FL. Dr. Hiltz is a Navy veteran, retired federal procurement professional and former professor of business and public school board member. She has a BA and MBA in Management and an EdD in Leadership Studies.

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