I'll add my #soapbox here too: Your VOTE is YOUR voice. If you don't use that, no matter how loud or much you scream between you won't have used your full power. @sxswedu.com

Band together with people you might not normally talk to -- that makes our voices louder to work in coalition.

Be prudent & realistic. Talk about the jobs. Use the What, so what, what now frame - to help your representatives understand what the changes that are being proposed or ordered mean for their constituents. Make the broader context known - remove the trigger words to focus on the highest level.

Public messaging is so important. Share your stories with your representatives. #engageinYOURdemocracy

Administration could help bring together #highered and #employers to make skills-based hiring a reality. The T1 EO on #skills based hiring is the only one that wasn't rescinded in the democratic term. @sxswedu.com

Brightspots: Skills-based hiring is a very purple issue. We have an incoming secretary who is focused on workforce ed. The half-life of skills is shrinking and the need to move more quickly is paramount. There is so much opportunity to talk about Skills and spur both public & private investment

Brightspots for bipartisan collaboration? WIOA. Short-term Pell. Justice affected people. Credit for Prior Learning. AI. Skills. There's room to make progress in these areas in both Congress and from the Administration. They are engaging JFF and others.

The margins are VERY THIN, even amongst the Republicans.

Where are they going to find the cuts? quite possibly in the reduction of loan incentive programs for TitleIV. The Hill could be used as the 'pay for' (for the tax cuts) if the courts don't decide in their favor or delay. QOTD: Somebody Please Do Something. This is "CongressMath"

The shock and awe factor of saying "remove the department" moves us closer to the original goal of reducing the size of the department because he overshoots the ask, and we negotiate to a more 'favorable' area. @sxswedu.com

If you haven't read "The Art of the Deal" it's the playbook for how the Prez operates. He constantly moves the goalposts to change the conversation. When you make the new 10, the 15 then getting to half gets him closer to what he wants. - Steve Taylor

Congress is watching Title IV - #FAFSA very closely. It makes it very unlikely that the department covering loans will go away. @sxswedu.com #SXSWEDU

Most of the offices in the Dept. of Ed are required by law, so Congress would have to remove them. The Dept has been asked to put forth a large scale reduction in force with a regorg that is due by March 13.

Wildcard: What is the power of DOGE? Right now they are testing can the president decide how money should be spent versus Congress directing funds and agencies spending it. DOGE is trying to get around that. Empoundment is in violation of law. - Lindsay Fryer

Biggest Wildcard: Seeing what happens with IES will be really interesting. - David Soo

Biggest wildcard: Loper Bright precedent which is aimed at preventing executive overreach. So many of the executive orders could be rolled back in the courts. - Steve Taylor

Senate is voting today on whether to confirm Linda McMann (expected to be confirmed) doesn't have much experience in edu policy. Priorities that stood out: You won't see a lot of distance between her & the prez however, she has a keen in interest in workforce ed. Different than DeVos.

USAID and US Department of Ed were early examples -- what can we cut with little legal problems to hit the goals of #DOGE Lindsay Fryer thinks we'll have more controlled change going forward when the experts who are appointed are confirmed. @sxswedu.com

State of play in K12 uncertainty around state/national. In higher ed there are many decisions being made in rapid fire. It's whack-a-mole. There will be guidance, clawbacks and we'll be living in a #VUCA world. Workforce is the brightspot now. Steve Taylor @sxswedu.com #FederalPolicy

1 Word on what's Happening: Steve Taylor: Stand Together Trust: Cocktail (because at the end of day we all need one to get through the news cycle)

1 Word on what's Happening: David Soo: Jobs for the Future: Dynamic

1 Word on what's Happening: Lindsey Fryer: Loadstone VC: Limit-Testing

Buckle Up. It's the hour I'm in a session on #educationpolicy in a #postelection world. Excited to hear from the speakers about the uncertainty we're facing. #SXSWedu @sxswedu.com

"Today, I want to convince you to start turning your studies, your teaching, your work, and maybe your entire life into a giant laboratory. I want to teach you to convince you that curiosity is more powerful that certainty."

- Anne-Laure Le Cunff at #SXSWEDU 2025