Indiana Secures Limited Federal Education Waiver Amid Ongoing Debate

Federal Title I, Title III and related grants, created in the 1960s, provide supplemental aid to low-income and English-learner students. The Trump administration’s “Returning Education to the States” plan seeks to cut federal oversight, having already granted waivers to Iowa and Louisiana.

The Independent

On Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon approved Indiana’s “Returning Education to the States” waiver, announced alongside Indiana Secretary of Education Katie Jenner and Governor Mike Braun. The waiver merges five federal funding streams into a single grant, reported as $50 million over four years (Independent) or $13 million in Title grants (The 74). Indiana projects compliance-cost savings of $20 million (Independent) or $8 million (The 74) and gains authority to revise its school-accountability system, shifting emphasis to college- and career-readiness.

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Reports differ on the waiver’s total value—$50 million (Independent) versus $13 million (The 74)—and on projected savings—$20 million versus $8 million. The waiver earmarks $13 million for Title-grant activities such as testing, teacher training and after-school programs, and pilots a combined-fund model in up to 15 % of districts.

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McMahon said the waiver “frees state and local funds from bureaucratic red tape and returns them to classrooms.” Jenner called it a way to maximize every federal dollar for students. Braun said Indiana will keep setting the national education standard. An Indiana Department of Education spokesperson noted that the unapproved portion would need congressional action.

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EdTrust CEO Denise Forte warned the new accountability system could mask performance and divert funding from vulnerable students. All4Ed’s Phillip Lovell said the waiver stayed within legal limits but raised concerns about testing rule changes. Munyan-Penney noted the broader request was largely rejected.

The Independent

• “As states, we have significant control over education in that we set the standards, we can choose our curriculum, we can design our assessments,” — Katie Jenner, Indiana Secretary of Education

The Independent

• “The Department of Education will allow Indiana to rewrite its accountability system in a way that will mask student performance and move millions of dollars in dedicated funding away from students who need it most,” — Denise Forte, CEO, EdTrust

The Independent

• “I hope that it signals that, at least when it comes to waivers, the department is doing closer to the law than what some may have expected,” — Phillip Lovell, All4Ed

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• “frees…state and local funds from bureaucratic red tape compliance paperwork, and returns it to its rightful place in the classroom.” — Linda McMahon, U.S. Secretary of Education

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Indiana officials say they will lobby Congress for statutory changes to broaden waiver authority. Several other conservative-led states have expressed interest in similar flexibility, suggesting more waiver requests may appear in the coming months.

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