Education Department to oversee initiative promoting 'patriotism' and 'civic knowledge' [View all]

Source: USA Today

Sept. 18, 2025, 1:02 p.m. ET


WASHINGTON - The Department of Education is bringing in over 40 conservative groups to launch a civic education initiative it says will renew patriotism and increase knowledge of the nation's founding principles. The department did not specify exactly what initiatives the groups would undertake but said the “America 250 Civics Education Coalition,” will be spearheaded by the America First Policy Institute, a conservative think tank founded by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.

The involved groups include the 1776 Project Foundation, whose affiliated PAC ran a nationwide campaign to oust school board members they alleged were in favor of racial and social justice lessons. It also includes Moms for Liberty, a Florida-based group that has targeted school board members, advocated for book bans and does not have to disclose its donors.

Others include Turning Point USA, the college advocacy group founded by the late Charlie Kirk; the Heritage Foundation, a right-leaning think tank and the lead sponsor of Project 2025; Hillsdale College, a conservative Christian school in Michigan, and the Faith and Freedom Coalition, a free market group with roots in the Tea Party movement that also opposes abortion and same-sex marriage.

They plan to visit K-12 schools in all 50 states, hold a competition between students on American history and launch a college speaker series that'll focus on America's "core rights and values."

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/09/18/education-department-coalition-civic-knowledge/86216312007/