Former President Donald Trump has unveiled several new appointments for his prospective administration, focusing on education and legislative affairs. Penny Schwinn, former Tennessee Education Commissioner, has been nominated for Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education. Schwinn's background includes navigating the educational challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, implementing school voucher programs, and reforming Tennessee's school funding model. Her prior experience includes roles at the Texas Education Agency and as Delaware's Assistant Secretary of Education. Trump praised Schwinn's commitment to school choice and returning education control to individual states.
Trump also announced three Deputy Assistants to the President and Deputy Directors of the White House Office of Legislative Affairs: Jay Fields, Jeffrey Freeland, and Pace McMullan. Fields brings experience from the House of Representatives, having served as Deputy Policy Director for Speaker Mike Johnson and Executive Director of the House Republican Study Committee. Freeland worked with Trump during the 2016 primaries, building congressional support, and later served in the Office of Management and Budget and the East Wing as a Special Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs. McMullan's congressional career began in the House in 2013 as a Legislative Director, and he has since worked in the Senate, most recently as Executive Director of the Senate Steering Committee.
