Friday, March 28, 2025
According to recent reports, President Trump is preparing an executive order to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, before completely closing the agency. Staying true to his commitment — one of many headline-grabbing pledges he made during his campaign — the president plans to take action later this month to defund the department.
The order is part of Trump’s plan to return education to the control of the states. He and adviser Elon Musk, whom he has tasked with finding ways to dramatically reduce government spending, reportedly intend to place department staff on paid leave, encourage others to leave their positions and transfer many of the department’s responsibilities to other agencies in the government.
“At this time, I want to clarify that the Department of Education remains intact and continues its operations,” West Hempstead Superintendent of Schools Dan Rehman said in a statement last Thursday. “While there has been public discussion about various proposals, no structural changes have been enacted that would affect our district’s federal funding or obligations.”
The Department of Education was created by President Jimmy Carter in 1979 as a cabinet-level agency, and began operations in May 1980. It helps fund schools nationwide; coordinates federal education programs, which include college financial aid for over 12 million post-secondary students; and ensures equal access to educational opportunities for students across the country.
Since its founding, other elected officials have called for disbanding the department, because the majority of educational responsibilities fall to the states. They oversee curriculum and graduation requirements, as well as the administration of schools and colleges, and much of the funding for public schools comes from state and local sources.
But because individual states having vastly different financial and educational resources, educational opportunities for pupils have varied widely, and over the years the Department of Education has stepped in to fill in those gaps, providing financial support to states and districts that fall behind. Without the agency, many education experts contend, inequities from state to state, and from school district to district, may widen.
Even if the department is eliminated, several federal education laws would remain in place, including the Every Student Succeeds Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The ESSA sets high standards for math and reading in K-12 to prepare students for college, and protects disadvantaged students by directing resources to their studies. The IDEA ensures that children with disabilities have free and appropriate public education.
Any administration decisions about the Education Department are unlikely to cause any drastic changes in New York’s educational systems. In a recent statement responding to the likelihood of an executive order from Trump, the State Education Department made clear that its administrators “remain committed to the inherent dignity and worth of every child. As such, we denounce the intolerant rhetoric of these orders. Our children cannot thrive in an environment of chaos; they need steady and stable leadership that we will endeavor to provide.”
Nonetheless, local school officials say they anticipate possible complications with federal programs, and a loss of federal funding that would impact area districts.
“At this point, it is too early to identify the full impact such a decision could have on our schools, students and community,” Malverne Superintendent of Schools Lorna Lewis said in a statement last Wednesday. “However, we remain committed to advocating for the resources and support necessary to maintain the high standards of education our district upholds. As more information becomes available, we will continue to assess any potential effects.”
“As superintendent, it would be premature to speculate about potential future impacts on our district,” Rehman said, sentiments that were echoed by other school leaders in West Hempstead and Malverne. “We remain focused on providing high-quality education while meeting federal and state requirements. We will carefully monitor any developments and inform our school community of any changes that could affect our operations.”
