A Message from Linda Waldbaum Newsletter Editor
According to US News and World Report, one of President Trump’s campaign promises was to dissolve the U.S. Department of Education (DoEd). On February 4, 2025, Trump doubled down on his promise when he told his cabinet choice for the DoEd, Linda McMahon, to “put herself out of a job”. Republican Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota is of the same mindset as he introduced a bill in November 2024 to close the department. However, Trump may not wait for Congress, as he has alluded to signing an executive order that would shut down the DoEd immediately.
If either Congress or President Trump succeed in dismantling this forty-five year old agency, what would this mean for public education in our country? Public education, as a whole, is primarily under the jurisdiction of State and local governments. The States determine curriculum standards, graduation requirements, and teacher certification. Ninety-two percent of funding for public schools K-12 comes from State and local sources. So why is the Federal Department of Education so important, and why would its dissolution weaken the public education system of our great nation?
To understand the impact of losing the DoEd, it is important to understand how and why the DoEd came to be. The Cold War spurred competition between the Soviet Union and the United States in scientific and engineering fields. In 1958, Congress passed the National Defense Education Act (NDEA) in order to expand educational opportunities for Americans. NDEA focused on improving and supporting science, math, and foreign language instruction in K-12 schools, as well as provided loans and graduate fellowships for students seeking higher education. Alongside the Cold War motivator, the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s put a spotlight on the gross inequities of educational opportunities across the country. The 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act launched several programs aimed at rectifying these disparities. Within this act, the Title I program was born, which provides Federal funding to disadvantaged children of poor urban and rural areas. The Higher Education Act of 1965 was also passed providing economic assistance to students seeking college degrees.
For all the good these Federal programs did to improve the quality of education and to make it more accessible to all children, they were scattered across various agencies within the government, minimizing their actual impact. There was no department within the Federal government whose primary focus was supporting the educational endeavors of American citizens. Therefore, in the latter part of 1979, Congress created legislation and Jimmy Carter signed the bill which established the cabinet level agency of the DoEd. The creation of the DoEd was not to divert educational control away from the States; on the contrary, its purpose was to provide a supportive role in helping individual States achieve the educational goals defined by the State and local governments.
The DoEd focused on closing the educational gap for underprivileged students. This includes establishing policies for federal financial aid, providing funds for special education programs and economically disadvantaged students, as well as enforcing laws against discrimination in education. The DoEd holds States accountable to all children, making sure underprivileged students have access to the same educational opportunities as those from more affluent families. Prior to the establishment of the DoEd, children with special needs did not have access to public education, leaving many institutionalized. Through the work of the DoEd, and its Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), States receive money to implement educational programs that support special needs students and give them equal access to a public education. The DoEd also provides financial resources for economically disadvantaged children through Title I funding to schools of low-income students. It has been suggested that programs like OSEP and Title I would not be abolished, but simply moved to other agencies. However, without the DoEd, there is no one advocating for federal funds that would go specifically toward ensuring equal educational opportunities for all children. Therefore, it would only be a matter of time for the funding to be slashed and disappear altogether. If federal funds did continue to go to States, without the DoEd oversight, there is no guarantee the money would be used toward programs that help students who need it most.
The DoEd is also responsible for the Federal Student Aid (FSA) program that provides loans and grants to millions of students each year allowing them to afford a college education. Tuition costs have skyrocketed in the last 20 years and without FSA, a college degree would only be accessible to the very wealthy. Shutting down the DoEd, in essence, would shut out the majority of American citizens from higher education.
The idea that abolishing the DoEd and scattering its programs to other government departments would make our government more efficient is severely misguided. Consolidating educational programs under one department reduces redundancy and bureaucratic delays. If those programs were moved to agencies with other priorities outside of education, it would likely create numerous inefficiencies. In addition, the DoEd makes up only 4% of the Federal government’s budget. The money is a direct investment towards our next generation of American citizens who will one day be the leaders of our Nation. Without the DoEd, our nation will have a vast undereducated population which will ultimately cost taxpayers more than the small 4% garnered by the DoEd. Keeping the doors of the DoEd open will allow all citizens in this country access to a free and appropriate education, which is required for the continuation of our long-standing democracy. As educators and unionsist, it is our responsibility to make sure those doors continue to remain open!
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