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‘Equip educators or students with the knowledge and character needed to uphold the freedoms we enjoy’
President Donald Trump’s Education Department recently announced a new pool of federal grant money aimed at helping teach about American history and civics as the nation marks its 250th anniversary next year.
Called the American History and Civics Education National Activities-Seminars for America’s semiquincentennial program, it aims to create evidence-based seminars to coincide with the nation’s anniversary in 2026.
The grants will pay for seminars for educators or students on American history and civics, with a focus on primary documents and topics such as the Declaration of Independence, the principles of the founding fathers, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
The available pool of funding sits at $14.2 million, said department official Orman Feres during a July 1 webinar explaining the grants, adding the department expects to provide between seven and 10 awards.
“The upcoming Semiquincentennial of America’s founding is more than a commemorative milestone—it is a call to reinvest in the education and cultivation of a citizenry capable of sustaining the American experiment in self-government,” the federal registry application guidelines state.
“By supporting seminars that encourage a deeper understanding of our constitutional republic, this new program aims to equip educators or students with the knowledge and character needed to uphold the freedoms we enjoy,” the guidelines state.
“Through an honest engagement with our history and an appreciation of the institutions that make our civil society flourish, we can prepare the next generation to carry forward the principles of liberty, limited government, and dedication to the doctrine of equality that define our nation,” they add.
The grant selection process will prioritize applicants from colleges and universities “that have established independent academic units dedicated to civic thought, constitutional studies, American history, leadership, and economic liberty,” according to the federal register.
This priority carve out has raised eyebrows among some.
Inside Higher Ed reported July 8 such centers are often considered conservative as they’re often “spearheaded by GOP politicians and their appointees rather than established from within universities.”
There are at least 13 public universities across eight states—Arizona, Florida, Ohio, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah—with such civics units, the outlet reported.
All of the states where these centers are located voted for Trump in 2024.
Feres, during the webinar, said the preference priority is only worth 10 points out of 110 points total in terms of the grant selection process.
The grants will be chosen in part based on the likelihood that they can improve teaching methods, and student learning and achievement, and nonprofits can also partner with universities to apply for the grants, he said.
The Education Department did not respond to The College Fix’s requests for comment. Neither did Paul Carrese, director of the Center for American Studies at Arizona State University.
MORE: Poll: Young Americans much less patriotic than two decades ago
IMAGE CAPTION & CREDIT: Students hold an American flag / William Perugini, Shutterstock
