Assistant Secretary Kirsten Baesler on Returning Education to the States with Waivers, Ed-Flex Authority, & Funding

Assistant Secretary Kirsten Baesler on Returning Education to the States with Waivers, Ed-Flex Authority, & Funding

Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education Kirsten Baesler joins the podcast to discuss what “returning education to the states” looks like in practice. With Iowa and Louisiana receiving waivers to consolidate state activities funds and about ten more states in discussions with the U.S. Department of Education, we dig into the opportunities provided by the waivers and how the iterative application process is unfolding. We also cover Ed-Flex authority, interagency agreements, the cumbersome competitive grant process, and Assistant Secretary Baesler’s vision for transparency and assessments. Trump’s K-12 Leader: Let’s Improve Assessment Without Sacrificing Accountability: https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/opinion-trumps-k-12-leader-lets-improve-assessment-without-sacrificing-accountability/2026/05 [https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/opinion-trumps-k-12-leader-lets-improve-assessment-without-sacrificing-accountability/2026/05] 🔗 Links & Resources: * Visit our website: DFIPolicy.org 💡 Stay Connected: * Follow us on Instagram: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Twitter: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Facebook: /DFIPolicy * Subscribe to our YouTube channel (@DFIPolicy) for future episodes! 📩 Contact Us: If you have feedback or suggestions for future podcasts, please reach out to us at Podcast@DFIPolicy.org. 🎧 Thank You for Listening: Freedom to Learn is a production of the Defense of Freedom Institute. You can learn more about DFI at DFIPolicy.org. If you enjoyed this episode, please give it a thumbs up, share it, and subscribe for more insights into education law and policy. Thank you for your support!

Danyela Souza Egorov on New York City’s Soaring Spending, Plummeting Enrollment, & Chronic Absenteeism

New York City spends $42,000 per pupil, but student outcomes are mediocre and families are fleeing the system. Danyela Souza Egorov joins Freedom to Learn to discuss the city’s shrinking enrollment, increasingly empty school buildings, and soaring spending. Danyela urges city leaders to make responsible decisions, tackle the city’s chronic absenteeism crisis, and prioritize students and families rather than powerful unions. The conversation covers foolish COVID-era policies that reshaped public education, why parents are demanding more options, and what the federal scholarship tax credit could mean for New York families seeking educational freedom. * What to Do About NYC’s Empty Schools: https://manhattan.institute/article/what-to-do-about-nycs-empty-schools?utm_source=linkedin&utm_medium=social [https://manhattan.institute/article/what-to-do-about-nycs-empty-schools?utm_source=linkedin&utm_medium=social] * The Ghost Classrooms Haunting America’s Education System: https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-ghost-classrooms-haunting-americas-education-system?author=Danyela+Souza+Egorov&category=undefined&elementPosition=0&row=3&rowHeadline=Latest+News&rowType=Vertical+Carousel&title=The+Ghost+Classrooms+Haunting+America?s+Education+System [https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-ghost-classrooms-haunting-americas-education-system?author=Danyela+Souza+Egorov&category=undefined&elementPosition=0&row=3&rowHeadline=Latest+News&rowType=Vertical+Carousel&title=The+Ghost+Classrooms+Haunting+America?s+Education+System] * Schools Received More Money Than Ever. Parents Aren’t Seeing The Results: https://www.dailywire.com/news/were-spending-more-than-ever-on-education-is-it-getting-us-anything [https://www.dailywire.com/news/were-spending-more-than-ever-on-education-is-it-getting-us-anything] * Chronic Absenteeism Is Hampering School Improvement Efforts in New York City: What Can Be Done About It? https://manhattan.institute/article/chronic-absenteeism-hampering-school-improvement-efforts-new-york-city [https://manhattan.institute/article/chronic-absenteeism-hampering-school-improvement-efforts-new-york-city] 🔗 Links & Resources: * Visit our website: DFIPolicy.org 💡 Stay Connected: * Follow us on Instagram: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Twitter: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Facebook: /DFIPolicy * Subscribe to our YouTube channel (@DFIPolicy) for future episodes! 📩 Contact Us: If you have feedback or suggestions for future podcasts, please reach out to us at Podcast@DFIPolicy.org. 🎧 Thank You for Listening: Freedom to Learn is a production of the Defense of Freedom Institute. You can learn more about DFI at DFIPolicy.org. If you enjoyed this episode, please give it a thumbs up, share it, and subscribe for more insights into education law and policy. Thank you for your support!

Bill Jacobson on Intersectionality, Anti-American Ideology, & How to Stop It

Intersectionality has quietly become the unseen driver behind today’s divisive education policies, anti-American sentiments, and campus radicalization. William A. Jacobson, Cornell Law School professor and founder of the Legal Insurrection Foundation, joins the podcast to sound the alarm on this dangerous ideological “mother’s milk” that feeds critical race theory, DEI, and even some acts of domestic extremism. Bill describes how teachers unions and colleges of education pushed intersectionality into K-12 classrooms. And he provides concrete actions policymakers should take to confront intersectionality directly, including executive orders and guidance, federal funding oversight, and congressional hearings. Intersectionality: The Rise of a Dangerous Anti-American Ideology and How to Stop It: https://dfipolicy.org/report-intersectionality/ [https://dfipolicy.org/report-intersectionality/] 🔗 Links & Resources: * Visit our website: DFIPolicy.org 💡 Stay Connected: * Follow us on Instagram: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Twitter: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Facebook: /DFIPolicy * Subscribe to our YouTube channel (@DFIPolicy) for future episodes! 📩 Contact Us: If you have feedback or suggestions for future podcasts, please reach out to us at Podcast@DFIPolicy.org. 🎧 Thank You for Listening: Freedom to Learn is a production of the Defense of Freedom Institute. You can learn more about DFI at DFIPolicy.org. If you enjoyed this episode, please give it a thumbs up, share it, and subscribe for more insights into education law and policy. Thank you for your support!

Sarah Parshall Perry on ABA Accreditation, Teachers Unions, & Gender Ideology

Sarah Parshall Perry of Defending Education joins Freedom to Learn for a fast-moving conversation on the biggest legal and policy fights in education today. We cover the launch of Defending Education’s new litigation center, the power of accrediting bodies like the American Bar Association, and what’s at stake for free speech and parental rights in K–12 and higher ed. We also get into gender secrecy policies, teachers unions’ political spending, and the growing push to turn classrooms into activist spaces. Plus, a new rapid-fire round! Wall Street Journal: How the ABA Spreads DEI in Law Schools: https://www.wsj.com/opinion/american-bar-association-dei-law-school-accreditation-36e77872 [https://www.wsj.com/opinion/american-bar-association-dei-law-school-accreditation-36e77872] National Review: The ABA Is a Joke. So Why Is It Still Accrediting Law Schools? https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/04/the-aba-is-a-joke-so-why-is-it-still-accrediting-law-schools/ [https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/04/the-aba-is-a-joke-so-why-is-it-still-accrediting-law-schools/] 🔗 Links & Resources: * Visit our website: DFIPolicy.org 💡 Stay Connected: * Follow us on Instagram: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Twitter: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Facebook: /DFIPolicy * Subscribe to our YouTube channel (@DFIPolicy) for future episodes! 📩 Contact Us: If you have feedback or suggestions for future podcasts, please reach out to us at Podcast@DFIPolicy.org. 🎧 Thank You for Listening: Freedom to Learn is a production of the Defense of Freedom Institute. You can learn more about DFI at DFIPolicy.org. If you enjoyed this episode, please give it a thumbs up, share it, and subscribe for more insights into education law and policy. Thank you for your support!

Arkansas Education Secretary Jacob Oliva on Education Freedom, Flexibility, & Funding

Arkansas is streamlining the K-12 education bureaucracy, investing in educators, and expanding families’ options. On today’s episode of Freedom to Learn, Arkansas Secretary of Education Jacob Oliva covers the rollout of the transformative LEARNS Act and its impact. He explains how Arkansas expanded Education Freedom Accounts (EFAs) from targeted eligibility to universal access, and what it took to launch the statewide choice program that now serves about 50,000 students. Secretary Oliva also shares Arkansas’ federal waiver strategy to cut red tape and return decision-making power to the state by consolidating fragmented funding streams, reducing compliance costs, and shifting the focus from micromanaging inputs to holding schools accountable for results. 🔗 Links & Resources: * Visit our website: DFIPolicy.org 💡 Stay Connected: * Follow us on Instagram: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Twitter: @DFIPolicy * Follow us on Facebook: /DFIPolicy * Subscribe to our YouTube channel (@DFIPolicy) for future episodes! 📩 Contact Us: If you have feedback or suggestions for future podcasts, please reach out to us at Podcast@DFIPolicy.org. 🎧 Thank You for Listening: Freedom to Learn is a production of the Defense of Freedom Institute. You can learn more about DFI at DFIPolicy.org. If you enjoyed this episode, please give it a thumbs up, share it, and subscribe for more insights into education law and policy. Thank you for your support!