U.S. Education Dept. unites conservative groups to create ‘patriotic’ civics content

The U.S. Department of Education announced a partnership Wednesday with more than 40 conservative organizations to create programming around civics aimed at the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States.

This coalition “will take bold steps to educate, inspire, and mobilize youth toward active and informed citizenship,” U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a press release.

Called the America 250 Civics Education Coalition, the project will be overseen by the Education Department and led by the America First Policy Institute (AFPI), a nonprofit conservative group. It includes Turning Point USA, the Heritage Foundation, Hillsdale College and other conservative state and national organizations.

The Education Department statement said the initiative “is dedicated to renewing patriotism, strengthening civic knowledge, and advancing a shared understanding of America’s founding principles in schools across the nation.”

The department did not provide details of the types of educational materials or programs to be created, saying the coalition held its first meeting on Wednesday, and would be rolling out “a robust programming agenda,” over the next 12 months. Included in that programming, the statement said, would be a 50-state speaking tour on college campuses and a college speaker series on fundamental liberties.

Erika Donalds, co-chair of the coalition and chair of education opportunity at AFPI, said in the announcement that, “through this coalition, we are uniting to bring these lessons back to classrooms and communities and prepare future generations to safeguard our republic.”

The announcement comes as the Trump administration is dismantling the Education Department in an effort to “return education to the states.“

The federal government is prohibited by law from “any direction, supervision, or control over the curriculum” in schools.

Education Department officials did not return a request for comment Wednesday night.

The department also announced that it would begin a program to award grants “to promote a civic education that teaches American history, values, and geography with an unbiased approach.”

This is not the first time President Trump has sought to promote patriotism in education. During his first term he founded the “1776 Commission” to advise on how to teach young people the “founding principles” of the nation. In an executive action earlier this year, part of a broader announcement about “ending racial indoctrination” in schools, he revived it.