Membership & Awards Lunch: Point/Counterpoint The Future of the U.S. Department of Education: Reform, Reinvention, or Retrenchment?

Session Submission Type: Special Event

Abstract

AGENDA

View Supporting Documents

Call to Order, Ingrid Gould Ellen, APPAM President

APPAM Business

Treasurer’s Report: Lisa Gennetian, APPAM Treasurer

Nominating Committee Report: Kosali Simon, APPAM President-Elect 

Recognition of the 2025 Fall Conference Program Committee & Student Ambassadors: Kosali Simon, APPAM President-Elect

APPAM Membership Year in Review, Ingrid Gould Ellen, APPAM President            

Presentation of Awards

Below are the awards being honored at this year's lunch:

• PhD Dissertation Award
  
  
  
  • Raheem Chaudhry, University of California, Berkeley
  
  
  
  


• World Citizen Prize in Environmental Performance
  
  
  
  • Shiran Victoria Shen, Stanford University 
  
  
  
  


• Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis Award **Nathan will be recognized at the 2026 event in Boston
  
  
  
  • Nathan J. Cook, Indiana University 
  
  
  
  

Plenary: Point/Counterpoint The Future of the U.S. Department of Education: Reform, Reinvention, or Retrenchment?

In an era of political polarization, educational inequality, and growing public scrutiny of federal authority, the role of the U.S. Department of Education faces renewed debate. In the first 6 months of his second term, President Trump reduced the size of the Department by half and withheld the distribution of billions of education dollars to states. These actions represent a substantial shift in education policy and funding in the U.S. This session convenes leading education policy experts to examine the fundamental question: What should the federal role in education be over the next decade? Panelists will explore competing visions for the Department—from expanding federal leadership on equity, student debt, and accountability, to decentralizing control and returning more authority to states and localities. Should ED lead on issues like curriculum, civil rights enforcement, and higher education financing? Or should its scope be narrowed in favor of local innovation? The session will surface key tradeoffs in federal education policy and provide a platform to assess how research and political feasibility can shape the future of the Department.

Moderator: Erdal Tekin,  American University,Editor JPAM

Speakers:

• James Kvall, Former Under Secretary, U.S. Department of Education


• Amy Ellen Schwartz, University of Delaware, Biden School


• Michael Shires, America First Policy Institute

Policy Area

• Special and Business Events

Moderator

• Erdal Tekin, American University

Speakers

• Amy Ellen Schwartz, University of Delaware

• Michael Alan Shires, America First Policy Institute

• James Kvaal, Former Under Secretary of Education

• Shiran Victoria Shen, Washington University in St. Louis

• Donald Moynihan, University of Michigan

• Ingrid Gould Ellen, New York University

• Lisa Gennetian, Duke University

• Kosali Simon, Indiana University

• Sarah A. Cordes, Temple University

• Raheem Chaudhry, University of Washington

• David Young Peyton