Keeping Education Accessible and Ending COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates in Schools
Signed: February 14, 2025
Published: February 20, 2025
Document Number: 2025-02931
📋Summary
This executive order directs the federal government to stop using discretionary federal funds to support K–12 schools, school districts, state education agencies, and colleges or universities that require COVID-19 vaccination as a condition for attending in-person classes. It affects education agencies and institutions that receive discretionary federal grants or contracts, as well as students and families who face vaccination requirements to attend in person. It instructs the Secretary of Education to quickly issue guidance explaining schools’ obligations related to parental authority, religious freedom, disability accommodations, and equal treatment when dealing with COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Within 90 days, the Secretary of Education (with Health and Human Services) must submit a plan to the President to end these mandates, including identifying noncompliant entities receiving discretionary federal funds and outlining how agencies will withhold or rescind funds where allowed by law.
💼Business Impact
This order most directly affects K–12 districts, universities, education service agencies, and any vendors that rely on **discretionary federal education grants/contracts** (e.g., edtech, student health services, campus operations, security, food service, research/admin contractors). Schools that maintain COVID-19 vaccine attendance mandates risk being flagged as non-compliant and could face **loss or rescission of discretionary federal funds**, creating downstream contract risk, delayed procurements, and budget tightening for suppliers. Compliance-wise, education organizations should prepare for forthcoming Department of Education guidelines by reviewing vaccination/attendance policies for alignment with **parental authority, religious accommodations, disability accommodations, and equal protection**, and documenting exemption/appeals processes; vendors should be ready to support alternative mitigation measures (testing, ventilation, remote access) that schools may adopt instead of mandates. Immediate actions: education leaders should inventory all discretionary federal funding streams and contract dependencies, pause any policy changes that could trigger non-compliance until guidance is issued, and engage counsel/HR to update accommodation workflows; vendors should assess revenue exposure to at-risk institutions, add contract clauses addressing funding interruptions, and proactively market compliant health/safety and access solutions.
Full Text
Executive Order 14214 of February 14, 2025
Keeping Education Accessible and Ending COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates in Schools
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered:
Section 1 . Purpose and Policy. Some school districts and universities continue to coerce children and young adults into taking the COVID-19 vaccine by conditioning their education on it, and others may re-implement such mandates. Parents and young adults should be empowered with accurate data regarding the remote risks of serious illness associated with COVID-19 for children and young adults, as well as how those risks can be mitigated through various measures, and left free to make their own decisions accordingly. Given the incredibly low risk of serious COVID-19 illness for children and young adults, threatening to shut them out of an education is an intolerable infringement on personal freedom. Such mandates usurp parental authority and burden students of many faiths.
It is the policy of my Administration that discretionary Federal funds should not be used to directly or indirectly support or subsidize an educational service agency, State educational agency, local educational agency, elementary school, secondary school, or institution of higher education that requires students to have received a COVID-19 vaccination to attend any in-person education program.
Sec. 2 . Definitions. For the purposes of this order:
(a) The term “educational service agency” has the meaning given in 20 U.S.C. 1401(5).
(b) The term “elementary school” has the meaning given in 34 CFR 77.1(c).
(c) The term “institution of higher education” has the meaning given in 20 U.S.C. 1001(a).
(d) The term “local educational agency” has the meaning given in 34 CFR 77.1(c).
(e) The term “secondary school” has the meaning given in 34 CFR 77.1(c).
(f) The term “State educational agency” has the meaning given in 34 CFR 77.1(c).
Sec. 3 . Ending COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate Coercion. (a) The Secretary of Education shall as soon as practicable issue guidelines to elementary schools, local educational agencies, State educational agencies, secondary schools, and institutions of higher education regarding those entities' legal obligations with respect to parental authority, religious freedom, disability accommodations, and equal protection under law, as relevant to coercive COVID-19 school mandates.
(b) Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall provide to the President, through the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, a plan to end coercive COVID-19 school mandates, consistent with applicable law, and including, as appropriate, any proposed legislation. Such plan shall also include: ( printed page 9950)
(i) a list of discretionary Federal grants and contracts provided to elementary schools, local educational agencies, State educational agencies, secondary schools, and institutions of higher education that are non-compliant with the guidelines issued pursuant to subsection (a) of this section; and
(ii) each executive department or agency's process for, to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law, preventing Federal funds from being provided to, and rescinding Federal funds from, elementary schools, local educational agencies, State educational agencies, secondary schools, and institutions of higher education that are non-compliant with the guidelines issued pursuant to subsection (a) of this section.
Sec. 4 . General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
THE WHITE HOUSE,
February 14, 2025.