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  • Trump signs order to begin dismantling of US education department

    Trump signs order to begin dismantling of US education department

    US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order instructing officials to begin the process of dismantling the Department of Education, fulfilling a promise he made during his 2024 campaign.

    “We’re going to shut it down as quickly as possible,” Trump stated after signing the order on Thursday. “It’s doing us no good.”

    Trump has consistently advocated for the elimination of the department, a long-held objective for some conservatives. However, completely abolishing it would require congressional approval, which is unlikely to happen.

    The decision is already encountering legal opposition from those aiming to prevent the agency’s closure, as well as the extensive staff cuts announced last week.

    Trump said “the US spends more money on education by far than any other country” yet students “rank near the bottom of the list in terms of success”.

    The White House stated that his administration would move to cut parts of the department that remain within legal boundaries.

    The executive order is likely to face legal challenges, like many of the Trump administration’s efforts to shrink the size of the federal government.

    At the ceremony, Trump praised Linda McMahon, whom he appointed to lead the department, and expressed his hope she would be the last secretary of education.

    He said he would find “something else” for her to do within the administration.

    After Trump signed the order, Louisiana Republican Senator Bill Cassidy announced plans to bring legislation aimed at closing the department.

    But Republicans hold a slim 53-47 majority in the Senate, and closing a federal department would require 60 votes, making such a goal a longshot.

    • A conservative pipe dream since Reagan
    • What Department of Education cuts mean for one mum
    • What happens to student loans now?

    But even if the department is not formally closed, the Trump administration could decimate its funding and staff as it has done with the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which subsequently stopped many of its programmes and humanitarian work.

    The text of the executive order does not include specifics on what actions the administration will take and which programmes might be axed.

    It orders McMahon to “take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure” of the department and give authority of such matters to state and local governments.

    It also directs her to ensure “the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely”.

    Established in 1979, the education department administers student loans and runs programmes that help low-income students.

    Trump has accused it of indoctrinating young people with racial, sexual, and political material.

    A common misconception is that the department operates US schools and sets curricula – but that is primarily done by states and local districts.

    And a relatively small percentage of funding for primary and secondary schools – about 13% – comes from federal funds. The majority is made up from states and local groups.

    The agency also plays a prominent role in administering and overseeing the federal student loans used by millions of Americans to pay for higher education.

    Soon after she was sworn in, McMahon sent the department’s 4,400 employees a memo titled “Our Department’s Final Mission”.

    “This is our opportunity to perform one final, unforgettable public service to future generations of students,” she wrote.

    “I hope you will join me in ensuring that when our final mission is complete; we will be able to say that we left American education freer, stronger, and with more hope for the future.”

    Earlier reports suggested Trump would look to end some of the department’s programmes and send others to different departments, such as the Treasury.

    Trump and fellow Republicans have accused the department of promoting a “woke” political ideology, and say the department is pushing liberal views about gender and race.

    America’s largest teachers’ union recently decried Trump’s plans, saying he “doesn’t care about opportunity for all kids”.

    In its statement, the AFT said: “No-one likes bureaucracy, and everyone’s in favour of more efficiency, so let’s find ways to accomplish that.

    “But don’t use a ‘war on woke’ to attack the children living in poverty and the children with disabilities, in order to pay for vouchers and tax cuts for billionaires.”

    Most US children attend public schools, which are free and governed by local officials. Nearly all of their funding comes from state and local taxes and curriculum decisions are made by state governments and school districts.

    The current cabinet-level department was established by Congress at the end of 1979.

    Two years later, former President Ronald Reagan, a Republican, started the call to undo it to save money and to favour “local needs and preferences”.

    With 4,400 employees, it is the smallest agency in the president’s cabinet and takes up less than 2% of the total federal budget.

    Some of those staff have already been affected by the Trump administration’s sweeping workforce cuts, led by the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), with many urged to retire, laid off, or placed on paid administrative leave.

    Nearly 2,100 people at the agency are set to be placed on leave from 21 March.

    Efforts by Doge to slash federal spending and radically restructure – or simply abolish – many government agencies have been overseen by tech billionaire Elon Musk.

  • Donald Trump picks WWE co-founder Linda McMahon for education secretary

    Donald Trump picks WWE co-founder Linda McMahon for education secretary

    Donald Trump has nominated Linda McMahon, co-founder of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and his transition co-chair, as his pick for education secretary.

    A long-time ally of Trump, McMahon previously served as head of the Small Business Administration during his first presidency and has contributed millions to his campaign efforts.

    In an announcement on Truth Social, Trump praised McMahon’s “decades of leadership experience and deep understanding of both Education and Business,” stating she would work to “empower the next generation of American students and workers.”

    Trump, who has been critical of the Department of Education, has pledged to shut it down—a task McMahon could potentially oversee.

    Her nomination follows Trump’s selection of Mehmet Oz, a celebrity doctor and former TV host, to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and Howard Lutnick as commerce secretary.

    These appointments reflect Trump’s trend of nominating loyal supporters to prominent cabinet positions.

    McMahon, who co-founded WWE with her husband in 1980, has longstanding ties to both wrestling and Trump, who made occasional appearances at WWE events.

    She stepped down as WWE CEO in 2009 to pursue an unsuccessful Senate bid.

    Although McMahon has limited experience in education, she served on Connecticut’s state board of education from 2009 to 2010. She also chairs the America First Policy Institute, a pro-Trump think tank, making her confirmation by the Republican-controlled Senate highly likely.

    “For the past four years, as the Chair of the Board at the America First Policy Institute, Linda has been a fierce advocate for Parents’ Rights,” Trump said in his statement.

    He said McMahon would “spearhead” the effort to “send Education BACK TO THE STATES”, in reference to his pledge to close the department.

    McMahon was named in a lawsuit filed last month involving the WWE.

    It alleges that she, her husband and other company leaders knowingly allowed young boys to be abused by a ringside announcer who died in 2012.

    The McMahons deny wrongdoing. A lawyer representing the pair told USA Today Sports that the allegations are “false claims” that stem from “absurd, defamatory and utterly meritless” media reports.

    Celebrity TV doctor picked to run Medicaid

    Donald Trump recently appointed Mehmet Oz to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a key agency responsible for overseeing healthcare for millions of Americans.

    Oz, a trained surgeon, rose to prominence in the early 2000s after appearing on The Oprah Winfrey Show and later hosting his own television program.

    However, Oz has faced criticism from health experts for endorsing controversial weight loss drugs and so-called “miracle” cures. He also drew backlash for advocating the use of malaria drugs as a treatment for Covid-19 during the pandemic’s early stages.

    “There may be no Physician more qualified and capable than Dr. Oz to Make America Healthy Again,” Trump said in a statement

    The Trump transition team said in a statement that Oz “will work closely with [Health Secretary nominee] Robert F Kennedy Jr to take on the illness industrial complex, and all the horrible chronic diseases left in its wake”.

    Oz will need to be confirmed by the Senate next year before he officially takes charge of the agency.

    The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services oversee the country’s largest healthcare programs, providing coverage to more than 150 million Americans. The agency regulates health insurance and sets policy that guides the prices that doctors, hospitals and drug companies are paid for medical services.

    In 2023, the U.S. government allocated over $1.4 trillion to Medicaid and Medicare, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

    Donald Trump, in a statement, announced Mehmet Oz as his pick to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, pledging that Oz would “cut waste and fraud within our country’s most expensive government agency.” The Republican Party platform also emphasized plans to boost transparency, choice, and competition while expanding access to healthcare and prescription drugs.

    Oz, 64, is a trained cardiothoracic surgeon specializing in heart and lung operations. He previously worked at New York-Presbyterian Hospital and Columbia University in New York City.

    After frequent appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Oz launched The Dr. Oz Show, where he provided health advice to millions of viewers.

    But the line between promotion and science on the show was not always clear, and Oz has recommended homeopathy, alternative medicine and other treatments that critics have called “pseudoscience”.

    He was criticised during Senate hearings in 2014 for endorsing unproven pills that he said would “literally flush fat from your system” and “push fat from your belly”.

    During those hearings Oz said he never sold any specific dietary supplements on his show. But he has publicly endorsed products off air and his financial ties to health care companies were revealed in fillings made during his 2022 run for the US Senate in Pennsylvania.

    During the Covid-19 pandemic, Oz promoted the anti-malaria drugs hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, which experts say are ineffective against the virus.

  • JAMB denies setting up cut-off marks for higher institutions

    JAMB denies setting up cut-off marks for higher institutions

    The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has refuted claims that it has established cut-off marks for admissions into higher institutions nationwide.

    In a statement posted on its official X account on Thursday, the Board rejected reports suggesting that it had set a cut-off mark of 140 for universities and 100 for polytechnics.

    “There’s no such thing as ‘cut-off mark’ in admission process to tertiary institutions in Nigeria, what’s obtainable is minimum tolerable score determinable by individual institutions,” it said.

    The denial follows widespread reports from the previous day claiming that JAMB had set 140 as the cut-off mark for university admissions and 100 for polytechnics and colleges of education.

    According to the statement attributed to JAMB Registrar Professor Ishaq Oloyede, this information was announced during the 2024 Policy meeting of the Board in Abuja.

    The meeting was attended by Education Minister Tahir Mamman, vice-chancellors, rectors, registrars of higher institutions, and other stakeholders.

    Minimum Entry Age

    During the meeting, the minister instructed that admissions to tertiary institutions should be restricted to candidates aged 18 and older.

    The announcement prompted a range of reactions from vice-chancellors, rectors, and registrars present at the meeting. The minister also criticized some parents for pressuring their underage children to gain admission into higher education institutions.

    Mamman emphasized that the 18-year age requirement aligns with the 6-3-3-4 educational system.

    “JAMB is hereby instructed from admission this year to admit only eligible students. That is those who have attained 18 years by our laws,” the minister.

    He insisted that his position was backed by Nigeria’s law guiding admissions into tertiary institutions. He said it shouldn’t require a statement from him for that to be taken into consideration by admission bodies.

    “Our laws require students to be in school from six years – Yes, there are those who do that from five –  and remain in primary school for six years, basic education for three years, and secondary school for three years… It doesn’t require a statement of the minister… we are only restating what is in the law,” he added.

    Professor Mamman added that for those who will not be able to gain admission into tertiary institutions, the Ministry of Education is taking skills to pupils from primary school.

  • JAMB cancels aptitude test for 2024 direct entry

    JAMB cancels aptitude test for 2024 direct entry

    The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced the cancellation of the aptitude test for 2024 Direct Entry candidates.

    In a statement published on its X account on Monday, JAMB indicated that other criteria will be used for Direct Entry admissions instead of the aptitude test.

    “Attention 2024 DE Candidates! This is to inform you that the Board has shelved the conduct of the aptitude test for the year. Other placement criteria shall be considered for your admission while adequate preparation goes into the exercise ahead of next year.”

    The Board also announced that all necessary processes have been established for the commencement of admissions into the nation’s tertiary institutions.

    Additionally, the 2024 edition of the long-awaited annual policy meeting is scheduled for Thursday.

    The meeting, which will be chaired by the Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, is set for July 18 in Abuja.

    This policy meeting will authorize the start of this year’s admission process.

    The bulletin stated published on X said,  “This year’s exercise will also feature the National Tertiary Admissions’ Performance-Merit Award, NATAP-M Awards, where the overall winner will receive N500 million, and other consolation winners will share N250 million collectively.

    “The policy meeting, usually attended by vice-chancellors of universities, rectors of polytechnics, monotechnics, and innovation enterprise institutes, provosts of colleges of education, and other critical stakeholders, will consider and approve the guidelines for the 2024 admission exercise.

    “The meeting will review the performance of the 2023 admissions exercise and the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME performance of candidates.

    “The minimum admission scores, an aggregation of individual institutions’ submissions, will be approved at the meeting.

    “This is not a cut-off mark, as often misconstrued, but a minimum score that no institution should go below. The decisions made at the meeting, chaired by the Minister of Education, form the guiding norms for admission and are a collective decision, not solely that of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB.

    “No institution is expected to commence the admission process until after the policy meeting, as the guidelines regulating the year’s admission exercise are determined at the meeting with the endorsement of the Minister of Education.

    “The meeting declares the commencement of the year’s admission exercise, setting the grand norms, and any institution that violates these collective norms will face sanctions.”

  • Implement agreement to avert education breakdown, ASUU appeals to FG

    Implement agreement to avert education breakdown, ASUU appeals to FG

    The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has once again urged the federal government to honor its various agreements, expressing reluctance to resort to strikes unless left with no alternative.

    During separate press briefings, the University of Ilorin and Kwara State University emphasized the need to prioritize funding for existing universities over establishing new ones that cannot be adequately supported.

    Since 2019, both the federal government and ASUU have entered into and signed agreements aimed at improving welfare and infrastructure across universities. However, several strikes have been undertaken to compel the government to fulfill its commitments.

    Addressing journalists, the University of Ilorin branch of ASUU outlined several outstanding demands to draw attention to their plight.

    Similarly, the Kwara State University branch appealed to education stakeholders to intervene with the federal government, questioning the approval of new universities while existing ones languish.

    Both branches conducted awareness campaigns on their campuses, highlighting their aversion to strikes except as a last resort.

    Dr. Alex Akanmu, Chairman of ASUU UniIlorin, elaborated to journalists on some of the unresolved agreements.

    He said, “Barely a year ago when the present administration was inaugurated, all hopes were high on timely resolution of our demands, given the pseudo-democratic roles played by some elements now in government. True to nature, they acted contrary and became more anti-labour to the appropriation. With joint efforts we have a country to rescue, we assure you that we shall overcome. For the avoidance of doubt, a few of our issues with the government are hereby brought to the notice of the public”

    He listed one of the unmet agreements to include, the federal government/ASUU renegotiation of the 2019 agreement.

    On his part, Chairman ASUU KWASU, Dr Shehu Salau, said about three and half months of salaries were still being owed by the federal government.

    He said, “ASUU condemns the deceitfulness of concerned authorities in the lives and members of our members across campuses. We warned that it will be unfortunate if we are forced to take action to demand the redress of all outstanding issues.

    “ASUU is not strike moulders. We don’t want a strike. But by the time we are forced to take action- in most of our universities, about three and half months of our salaries are still being withheld. The government should immediately pay back those salaries.”.

  • Kano declares State of Emergency in Education, recruits over 5,000 Teachers

    Kano declares State of Emergency in Education, recruits over 5,000 Teachers

    Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State has declared an emergency in the education sector.

    On Saturday, the governor made this announcement while giving instructional supplies to schools, granting scholarships to kids, and providing teachers with soft loans.

    At the event, the governor announced that the state government has recruited over 5,000 new teachers, with 10,000 more to be employed, while 1,000 classrooms would be constructed across the 44 local government areas in the state.

    According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Kano has about a million out-of-school children as of October 2023.

    This prompted the state government to declare a state of emergency in the state, with the aim of delivering quality education in the state.

  • Tinubu appoints management team for Nigerian education loan fund

    Tinubu appoints management team for Nigerian education loan fund

    President Bola Tinubu has given his endorsement to the appointment of the management team for the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.

    The appointment is contained in a Friday statement by presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale who said the move is in line with Tinubu’s “determination to secure Nigeria’s socio-economic future by ensuring sustainable higher education and critical skill development for all Nigerian students and the youth”.

    He listed the new management team as:

    (1) Mr. Akintunde Sawyerr – Managing Director/CEO

    (2) Mr. Frederick Oluwafemi Akinfala – Executive Director, Finance and Administration and.

    (3) Mr. Mustapha Iyal – Executive Director, Operations

    “With the appointment of the management team, the President expects that the necessary apparatuses are expeditiously put in place for the effective take-off of this pivotal Fund for the immediate and lasting benefit of Nigerian students and families in all parts of the country,” the statement read.

  • US begins Education, Culture Programmes in Lagos

    US begins Education, Culture Programmes in Lagos

    The United States has established three cultural and educational initiatives in Nigeria.

    Lee Satterfield, Assistant Secretary of State for Culture and Education, made the announcement on Wednesday at the University of Lagos, where she also made a foreign policy statement on the new initiatives.

    Her visit followed President Joe Biden’s meeting with African leaders in Washington, DC in 2022, as well as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to Nigeria earlier in January.

    Satterfield announced the start of the African Creative Initiative in TV, the American Music Mentorship Programme for people in the creative industry, and the Community College Initiative, which would enrol four Nigerian students in a community college in the United States.

    She also announced the creation of the Window of America at UNILAG, where students may learn about studying in America, the application process, and educational advice, among other things.

    Satterfield stated, “It was important for me to return and discuss growing opportunities between our two countries in education and culture, and I indicated three new projects we are introducing today; that there are economics for Nigerians in the creative economy sector. We see that as an incredible way to expand because of what we’ve seen around the world.”

    On the programme’s anticipated start date, she stated, “It will take place in the year 2024. So, very soon!”

  • Poor education funding aiding kidnapping — ASUU

    Poor education funding aiding kidnapping — ASUU

    The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Akure zone, which represents academic staff members of public universities in Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti States, voiced its dissatisfaction with the inadequate funding of the education sector during a meeting yesterday.

    Speaking to journalists prior to the zonal meeting held at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Dr. Adeola Egbedokun, the ASUU Akure Zonal Coordinator, highlighted the connection between inadequate education funding and the escalating incidents of violent crimes, particularly kidnappings, in the country.

    Egbedokun was accompanied by ASUU chairpersons from various universities, including Anthony Odiwe from OAU, Pius Mogaji from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Sola Afolayan from Ekiti State University, Abayomi Fagbuagun from Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, and Abraham Oladebeye from the University of Medical Sciences, Ondo. They collectively accused the federal government of failing to fulfill its promise to abolish the Integrated Personnel Payroll and Information System (IPPIS) for the payment of university lecturers.

    He said, “The government is insincere about funding education. They are insincere because how can successive administrations arrange several meetings where agreements were signed and such agreements would not be implemented? What has taken us to this particular quagmire is that the government failed to own up to the agreements signed with ASUU.

    “At this point again, we have to talk about the 26% budgetary allocation which of course is the yardstick set by UNESCO. If the government is sincere, definitely government will definitely know that it is the only solution to the present problem that we find ourselves in.

    “Most of these people that are creating insecurity, the hoodlums, perhaps it was because they didn’t have sufficient education. If education had been properly funded, definitely there wouldn’t have been any need for agitation from members of staff because they would have been paid.

    “Presently as we talk some people are hiding in the bush looking for who to kidnap because the government has surreptitiously removed them from having education. Education happens to be the only saving grace for people to live a good life.”

  • Court approves substituted service in lawsuit to provide free education for children

    On Wednesday, the Federal High Court in Lagos issued a substituted service order to all states in the Federation in a suit filed by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, seeking to compel the Federal Government, the 36 states, and Abuja to provide free and compulsory education up to junior secondary school level.

    During the hearings before Justice Daniel Osaigor, Falana’s counsel, Taiwo Olawanle, made an ex parte application for substituted service of the originating motion on the states via their liaison houses in Lagos.

    Justice Osiagor granted Olawanle’s application. He ordered that all the states of the federation be served the originating processes and other subsequent processes through their liaison houses in Lagos. The court then adjourned till May 20, 2024, for hearing.

    Falana and an early childhood education specialist, Hauwa Mustapha filed the suit for themselves and on behalf of the Alliance on Surviving Covid-19 and Beyond.

    The duo sued the Federal Government (through the Attorney General of the Federation), the Minister of education, the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), over their failure to access N68bn Universal Basic Education Commission funds to provide free basic education for every Nigerian Child of school age.

    The Attorneys General of the 36 states of the Federation and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja were also listed as respondents in the suit which was filed through their lawyer, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mrs Funmi Falana.

    The suit which was filed on January 19th at the Federal High Court, Lagos, asks the court to determine:

    “Whether the Respondents are not under a legal obligation to provide free, compulsory and Universal basic education for every Nigerian child of school age by virtue of section 2(1) of the Compulsory, Free Universal Basic Education Act, LFN, 2004.

    “Whether the refusal or failure of the Respondents to contribute not less than 50% of the total cost of projects as its commitment to the execution of the free, compulsory education project for every Nigerian child of school age is illegal as it violates section 11(2) of the Compulsory, Free Universal Basic Education Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

    “Whether the Respondents are not under a legal obligation to provide free, compulsory and Universal basic education for every Nigerian child of school age by virtue of section 2(1) of the Compulsory, Free Universal Basic Education Act, LFN, 2004.”

    In an affidavit sworn to by Femi Falana at the Federal High Court Registry in Lagos on January 26, 2024, the senior lawyer noted that a report made public by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) recently estimated the total number of out-of-school children in Nigeria to be 20.2 million.

    He noted that the report added that one in three children in the country is out of school and that the country has the highest number of out-of-school children in the world.

    Falana also stated that “in view of the fact that the 4th to 40th Respondents have failed to comply with section 3 of the Education Reforms Act which mandates them to contribute half (50%) of the total cost of projects to be executed in the State as their commitment to the execution of the projects, and their failure to access the matching grants; I wrote a letter and also issued a public statement calling the attention of the said 4th to 40th Respondents to the need to access the matching grant.

    “As at the date of filling of this suit; none of the Defendants have complied with the request/demand made by the Applicants while children of school age have continued to roam the streets.”