News and reports from the Department of Education.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that Legacy Traditional Schools (LTS), a network of 22 charter schools in Arizona, has entered into a resolution agreement to comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The agreement mandates LTS to provide language assistance to national origin minority students and parents with limited English proficiency (LEP) to ensure their meaningful access to the school's programs and activities.

The U.S. Department of Education today released additional details regarding the upcoming beta testing period for the 2025–26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®). High schools, community-based organizations (CBOs), institutions of higher education, and state entities are now invited to submit interest forms to participate in the subsequent stages of testing. These stages include Beta 2 (launching in mid-October), Beta 3 (early November), and Beta 4 (mid-November).

The U.S. Department of Education announced additional details regarding the upcoming beta testing periods for the 2025–26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®). Starting today, high schools, community-based organizations (CBOs), institutions of higher education, and state entities can submit interest forms to participate in subsequent stages of the testing period. These stages include Beta 2, launching in mid-October; Beta 3, starting in early November; and Beta 4, beginning in mid-November.

The U.S. Department of Education has announced the allocation of $251 million to 27 grantees nationwide, aimed at enhancing employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities. This funding, the largest vocational rehabilitation-focused competitive grant awarded by the Department, is intended to integrate people with disabilities into the 21st-century workforce through the Disability Innovation Fund (DIF) program.

The U.S. Department of Education has awarded $251 million to 27 grantees nationwide to enhance employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities. These five-year grants, under the Disability Innovation Fund (DIF) program, aim to promote competitive, integrated employment (CIE), ensuring that youth and adults with disabilities receive fair wages for their work while creating pathways to in-demand fields.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona issued a statement regarding President Biden’s intention to nominate Adam Gamoran as Director of the Institute of Education Sciences.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona issued a statement today regarding President Biden’s intention to nominate Adam Gamoran as Director of the Institute of Education Sciences.

The U.S. Department of Education has released 52 fact sheets detailing the Biden-Harris Administration's investments in public education across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. This announcement coincides with the conclusion of the Department’s week-long “Fighting for Public Education” Back to School Bus Tour.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that the Four Rivers Special Education District in Illinois has entered into an agreement to ensure its disciplinary practices do not deny students with disabilities a free appropriate public education (FAPE) and comply with civil rights obligations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The U.S. Department of Education announced today $179 million in grants aimed at supporting academic acceleration, with a focus on improving literacy and high-quality assessment systems. This initiative aligns with the Biden-Harris Administration's objective to enhance academic achievement across the nation. The funding includes $149 million for new Comprehensive Literacy State Development Grant (CLSD) awards—the largest allocation in the program's history—and nearly $30 million for Competitive Grants for State Assessments (CGSA).

The U.S. Department of Education has announced over $28 million in new awards under the Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP) program aimed at recruiting, preparing, developing, and retaining a diverse educator workforce nationwide. The announcement was accompanied by the release of new data detailing Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) approvals across all states.

Today, the U.S. Department of Education announced over $11 million in grants to support the recruitment and retention of bilingual and multilingual educators and provide high-quality programming to Native students to strengthen and revitalize Native American languages.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has entered into a resolution agreement to ensure compliance with federal civil rights obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This agreement addresses allegations of discrimination based on national origin, including shared Jewish, Muslim, Palestinian, or Arab ancestry.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has resolved a compliance review of the Memphis-Shelby County School District, culminating in a resolution agreement aimed at addressing the district’s handling of sexual assault cases involving both students and staff. Memphis-Shelby County is Tennessee's largest school district.

The U.S. Department of Education announced today the allocation of more than $80 million in grants to 26 recipients aimed at improving access to postsecondary education for students from low-income backgrounds. These grants are part of the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) initiative, which seeks to significantly increase the number of students from low-income backgrounds who are prepared to attend and succeed in postsecondary education.