| | | | |  | | By Bianca Quilantan | |  Black women were key in putting President Joe Biden in the White House, with more than 90 percent voting for the president in 2020. | Stephanie Scarbrough/AP | ‘TAKE US SERIOUSLY’ — President Joe Biden swept the South Carolina Democratic primary, but he could face challenges in November if he doesn’t earn the support of a key voting bloc: Black single moms. — Black women were key in putting Biden in the White House, with more than 90 percent voting for the president in 2020. But new polling of Black middle-to-low income single mothers of school-aged children found that 69 percent “believe the country is headed in the wrong direction,” and 91 percent reported difficulty grappling with inflation and the rising cost of living over the past year. A vast majority of these moms also reported they are concerned about their child’s academic progress, and more than half say elected officials are doing a poor job "when it comes to responding to the issues that are important to Black single mothers.” — Monday’s poll comes from The Current Project, a group that advocates for strong social and economic policy outcomes for Black single mothers. Alisha Gordon, the founder of the nonprofit, said she has a key recommendation for candidates running for any office this year: “Take us seriously.” — “Black single mothers are a viable and meaningful and impactful voting bloc,” Gordon said. “We are a force to be reckoned with, and we want to have our thoughts and feelings and opinions not just heard, but acted upon. … Trust that Black single mothers know what is best for them and for their families.” — Biden won South Carolina “because of his commitments, keeping his promises to Black voters who have been the backbone of the Democratic Party,” Michael Tyler, the Biden campaign’s communications director told CNN on Saturday following the victory. But the president wasn’t expected to face much competition in the primary that was closely-watched amid concerns about his reception among Black voters. Those concerns are likely to linger despite Saturday’s win as the Black voting bloc is expected to play a significant role in the general election. IT’S MONDAY, FEB. 5. WELCOME TO WEEKLY EDUCATION. LET’S GRAB COFFEE. Drop me a line at bquilantan@politico.com. Send tips to my colleagues Mackenzie Wilkes at mwilkes@politico.com, Juan Perez Jr. at jperez@politico.com and Michael Stratford at mstratford@politico.com. And follow us: @Morning_Edu and @POLITICOPro.
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| | WHAT SINGLE BLACK MOMS HAVE TO SAY — A majority of moms polled responded they are more likely to vote for candidates who support flexibility for parents to pick where their children go to school, including through public school choice or charter school and private school support. Monique Taylor, a mom in Detroit, Michigan, said she struggled when her son was kicked out of school when he was 5. Taylor said she faced several hurdles attempting to transfer her son out of her home district from transportation, cost of other schools and even the school district policies themselves. By the time she got her son enrolled at a nearby charter school, Taylor said: “He felt like the school system gave up on him.” “We've been trained that we need to be thankful — at least the kids are in school, be thankful, be thankful, be thankful,” she said. “That's not the case. Our kids deserve to know that their future is really their future.” — Taylor, who is a mom of four, said the state of the economy is also top of mind when she heads to the grocery store. About 66 percent of respondents say they are struggling to cover basic expenses. And 77 percent of moms responded they "have a need for government benefits or public assistance,” but their income is too high to qualify for them — even though they feel like they’re not making “enough to comfortably make ends meet.” — Finances and tight work schedules can often be a barrier for parents who want to participate in advocating for better school outcomes for their kids, Taylor said. Children are also witnessing the financial strain their moms are facing. — “As a mother, I would like to think they don't, but in actuality they do,” she said. “The healthier choices that I would love to choose for my children are way more expensive than going to the store to buy a pack of hot dogs and a box of macaroni and cheese. … I don't want to be judged for it. … When you’re a mother to two sets of twins, you have to make your food stretch. … Of course, I would like to make better choices, but I have to do what I can do with what I have.” — For Keasha Thompson, a mom in Fort Worth, Texas, understanding her daughter's school options when she first moved to the area was her top priority. Her daughter’s academic progress was a key reason she ended up moving her child to a charter school. She wanted her child to have access to gifted and talented programming and dual enrollment in high school. For a candidate to earn her vote, Thompson said: “As far as education, what I would need to hear is, you hear us, you see us, our voices matter. … We feel like we're not seen or heard.”
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Civil rights and gender justice groups have been pressing Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to act quickly to finalize the rule. | Alex Wong/Getty Images | TITLE IX MOVES — The Education Department recently sent its long-awaited Title IX rule to the White House for final approval, a key procedural step before it can be made public. The regulation mandates how schools respond to sexual misconduct, codifies protections for transgender students and is expected to unravel much of former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’ Title IX rule, a defining aspect of her tenure. — The move comes amid monthslong speculation over whether the Education Department will blow through a third self-imposed deadline on finalizing the part of Title IX that covers sexual misconduct and codifies protections for gender identity. — “The Department of Education has taken the next step to advance a rule, first proposed in 2022, that strengthens protections for students from sexual harassment and for LGBTQI+ students,” an Education Department spokesperson said in a statement. — The agency is still reviewing its rule overseeing athletics eligibility that proposed making sweeping bans on transgender students’ sports participation illegal. A department spokesperson emphasized that the regulation was “first proposed nine months after the first rule” and “received 150,000 public comments which by law must be carefully considered.” REACTION TO THE RULE — The Biden administration has been facing pressure from civil rights groups and Democrats to finalize both regulations. Know Your IX, Advocates for Youth and the National Women’s Law Center applauded the Biden administration for taking the next step on the rule. — “The updated guidance is the result of years of advocacy from students, many of whom experienced harm and disruption to their education because of bureaucratic delays and inaction to finalize new Title IX rules,” said Emma Grasso Levine, senior manager of Title IX policy and programs at Know Your IX. — But the groups also urged the administration to act quickly to ensure both rules are finalized. Shiwali Patel, NWLC’s director of justice for student survivors, said “students have waited far too long” for the Biden administration’s new rule. But she also said NWLC is “deeply concerned that only one of the proposed Title IX rules has moved to OIRA.” “The Biden Administration also pledged to safeguard the rights of trans, non-binary, and intersex student athletes, and it must fulfill its promise,” Patel said. “Students are depending on the administration, and trans, nonbinary, and intersex kids cannot be left behind.” — Conservative lawmakers and groups have been pushing back on the regulation, saying it will roll back the due process rights of those accused of sexual misconduct and weaken protections for cisgender women. “Instead of advancing Title IX’s mission of protecting women and girls from unjust discrimination, this new rule requires schools to replace women with men who identify as women," said Jennifer Braceras, vice president for legal affairs at Independent Women’s Forum. "The rule is unlawful, and it will not survive legal challenge in court.”
| | SCOTUS DENIES SFFA’s EMERGENCY PETITION — Supreme Court justices on Friday rejected Students for Fair Admissions’ emergency petition to block the United States Military Academy’s race-conscious admissions policies while its challenge against them is ongoing. — “The record before this Court is underdeveloped,” the Supreme Court wrote in an order, while also cautioning that the “order should not be construed as expressing any view on the merits of the constitutional question.” — No justice noted any dissent, and the unsigned statement bore no indication it came from any particular justice. The Supreme Court’s brief statement, which is uncommon in orders, also aligns with lower court concerns. — Judge Philip Halpern of the Southern District of New York, in the case against West Point, and Judge Richard Bennett, who is overseeing a similar challenge against the Naval Academy, have ruled that SFFA has yet to establish a factual record that the federal government cannot prove that their consideration of race in admissions is used to further compel governmental interests and is narrowly tailored. — The case against West Point is now headed back to the lower court, and the case against the Naval Academy has a trial set for September. More from your host.
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