The federal government has been involved in public education since before the Constitution was ratified. In the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 (renewed in 1789), the federal government mandated that land in new territories be set aside for the purpose of public education. This ensured that state legislators would have education on their minds when managing the land and distributing funds.
After the Civil War, the federal government pushed to expand public education in the South. The federal impact was most fully felt, however, after World War II. That was when the feds mandated desegregation, leading some states to shut down their schools rather than allow all Americans to attend the same schools. And then, under President Lyndon Johnson, the government started providing federal funds for schools that served underprivileged children.
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