In a significant move to fulfil a key campaign promise, the Trump administration has taken concrete steps towards dismantling the United States Department of Education. The plan, announced on Tuesday, involves shuttering large portions of the department by transferring its responsibilities to four other federal agencies.
Which Education Offices Are Being Moved?
The administration confirmed that six separate offices within the Education Department will be affected. The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Office of Postsecondary Education will see their duties taken over by the Department of Labor.
In a reshuffle affecting specialised programmes, the Office of Indian Education is set to become the responsibility of the Department of the Interior. Meanwhile, foreign language programmes will be relocated to the State Department.
Further changes involve moving a child care access programme and a medical education programme to the Department of Health and Human Services. This follows a similar move earlier this year, where adult education programmes were transferred to the Labor Department, which officials are calling a 'proof of concept'.
The Legal and Political Battle Ahead
President Donald Trump has long campaigned on shutting down the department, stating in March, "We’re going to shut it down, and shut it down as quickly as possible. It’s doing us no good. We want to return our students to the states." At that time, he signed an executive order calling for its elimination and tasked Education Secretary Linda McMahon with working with Congress to achieve it.
However, the administration acknowledges that only Congress holds the power to fully eliminate the department. To circumvent this, McMahon and her staff have spent months using the Economy Act, which permits inter-agency agreements, to transfer large portions of work without needing congressional approval.
Education Department officials stress that the programmes will continue to be funded at congressionally mandated levels. It remains unclear if these changes will lead to further job cuts in a department already impacted by mass layoffs and voluntary retirement offers this year.
Reactions and What Programmes Are Unaffected
Secretary McMahon has defended the strategy, arguing that education is a state responsibility. "Instead of filtering resources through layers of federal red tape, we will empower states to take charge," she said in a March statement. In a recent USA Today op-ed, she pointed to the government shutdown as evidence of the department's redundancy, noting that education continued uninterrupted.
The announcement sparked speculation that special education services might be included, but three sources confirmed to the Washington Post that they are not part of the current plan. Federal law mandates that these programmes be run by the Education Department, though the administration is reportedly exploring ways to work around that legality.
Additionally, federal student loan and grant programmes were not impacted by the new agreements. Critics of the move warn that it could disrupt vital programmes for vulnerable students and place responsibilities with agencies that lack the necessary expertise.
