Education Department Disbands Council after Romney, Colleagues Shine Light on Woke Agenda

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released a statement following the disbanding of the National Parents and Families Engagement Council and its far-left, anti-school choice agenda. Last week, Romney and fellow U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Mike Lee (R-UT), Tim Scott (R-SC), and Richard Burr (R-NC), wrote a letter to the Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona sounding the alarm about the council’s hyper-partisan makeup.

“Parents, teachers, and administrators all share responsibility for ensuring the highest quality education for our nation’s children,” said Senator Romney. “I hope The Department of Education continues to recognize the importance of this shared responsibility and finds productive ways to engage with parents because it’s parents—not Washington—who know what is best for their kids.”

“This administration cannot call something a ‘Parents and Families Engagement Council’ when it is full of partisan organization that do not represent the majority of parents,” said Dr. Cassidy. “The disbanding of this council is a major victory for parents.”

America First Legal had filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education and Secretary Cardona for violating the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA). Specifically, for breaking the insurance of adequate public notice of a committee’s activities and that it is fairly balanced and free from inappropriate influence.

Read the joint notice of dismissal here.