On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to start dismantling the Department of Education.
RETURNING EDUCATION TO PARENTS AND COMMUNITIES: Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order returning power over education to families instead of bureaucracies.
- The Executive Order directs the Secretary of Education to take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return education authority to the States, while continuing to ensure the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely.
- The Order also directs that programs or activities receiving any remaining Department of Education funds will not advance DEI or gender ideology.
DISMANTLING BUREAUCRACY AND EMPOWERING FAMILIES: Federal government control of education has failed students, parents, and teachers.
- Since its relatively recent inception in 1979, the Department of Education, which does not directly educate students, has spent over $3 trillion without improving student achievement as measured by standardized National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores.
- Federal taxpayers spent around $200 billion in additional education funding during COVID-19, which, given the substantial learning loss that resulted, typifies the ineffectiveness of the current federally driven model.
- Mathematics and reading scores are down in public schools, despite per-pupil spending having increased by more than 245% since the 1970s, indicating that more spending does not mean better education.
- 13-year-olds’ mathematics scores are the lowest they have been in decades.
- 13-year-olds’ reading scores are the lowest since testing began over 30 years ago.
- Low-performing students are falling further behind.
- In 2023, 13 Baltimore, Maryland, high schools had zero students who tested proficient in mathematics.
- The Department of Education burdens schools with regulations and paperwork.
- Its “Dear Colleague” letters have forced schools to redirect resources toward complying with ideological initiatives, which diverts staff time and attention away from schools’ primary role of teaching.
- Biden’s Department of Education added rules that imposed nearly $3.9 billion in costs and 4,239,530 paperwork hours.
- Taxpayers will no longer be burdened with tens of billions of dollars wasted on progressive social experiments and obsolete programs.
- Under the Biden Administration, the Department of Education wasted more than $1 billion in grants focused on entrenching radical ideologies in education.
- Biden’s Department of Education rewrote Title IX rules to expand the definition of “sex” discrimination to include “gender identity.”
- The Trump Administration recently canceled $226 million in grants under the Comprehensive Centers Program that forced radical agendas onto states and systems, including race-based discrimination and gender identity ideology.
FULFILLING PROMISES TO PARENTS AND STUDENTS: President Trump has outlined a bold vision for America’s schools and returning education back to the states.
- During his campaign, President Trump said “I will close the Department of Education and move education back to the states where it belongs.”
- While speaking on parental rights in education, President Trump spoke of a dramatic rethinking of schools: “I want every parent in America to be empowered to send their child to public, private, charter, or faith-based school of their choice. The time for universal school choice has come. As we return education to the states, I will use every power I have to give parents this right.”
- Since returning to office, President Trump has already signed an Executive Order to expand educational freedom and opportunity for families, recognizing our government-assigned education system has failed millions of parents, students, and teachers.
Congressman DeSaulnier’s Statement on President Trump’s Executive Order Dismantling the Department of Education
Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10) issued the following statement after President Trump signed an Executive Order dismantling the Department of Education.
“President Trump’s action today threatens the greatest investment we as a country can make in our future – public education. Across the country, students are struggling, with a recent study finding that more than two-thirds of eighth graders can’t read at grade level. We should be directing more funding to our schools to meet these challenges to support our nation’s students and families. Instead, Trump is stealing resources from tens of millions of students, including those with disabilities, in underserved schools, and who need help affording higher education, all as part of an effort to give even more tax cuts to billionaires and his ultrawealthy donors.
Let’s be clear – abolishing a federal agency requires an act of Congress, and we will fight this blatantly illegal order in the courts. As a senior member of the House Committee on Education and Workforce, I urge my Republican colleagues to stand up for the thousands of students, teachers, and families in their districts who will be harmed by this reckless action and fight back with us.”
Garamendi: Donald Trump has officially declared war on America’s students.
His illegal order to eliminate the Department of Education will devastate children and families nationwide, from preschool through college. Trump does not have the authority to dismantle a federal agency by executive order—this is yet another unconstitutional overreach by his administration and Congressional Republicans.
If allowed to stand, this reckless action will lead to skyrocketing class sizes, the mass firing of teachers, deep cuts to special education programs, higher college costs, and widespread harm to millions of students. It will also eliminate the enforcement of key civil rights protections, endangering nearly half of all students in the United States.
As the father of public-school teachers and grandfather of 14 school-aged children, this order is not only illogical but also personal.
I will work alongside House Democrats to challenge this unlawful order in court and push for legislation that strengthens—not destroys—America’s education system. Our children’s future depends on it.
