On Sunday, I went about my usual routine. I (finally) cleaned my North Campus dorm room, started a load of laundry, and called my mom. We talked about my classes, siblings, and what she was making for dinner. And then she told me that a family friend, a veteran of the Department of Education, had been fired, along with 50 percent of her coworkers.
The information rocked me to my core. Although I never quite realized it, the Department of Education has been a central entity in my life since the first time I stepped into a classroom. Like millions of others in the United States, I attended public, federally funded schools, and I receive financial assistance to attend the University of Michigan. Two of my younger siblings currently attend public education institutions, and intend to pursue higher education. The sweeping cuts made to the Department of Education made me wonder how my siblings and I would be affected, so I decided to do some research. Here’s what I found:
1. FAFSA
As college students, we are well acquainted with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, more commonly known as FAFSA. However, what is not commonly known is that the processing and disbursement of aid is overseen by the Department of Education. Now that the organization has become critically understaffed, students across the country will experience major changes to the status of their financial aid.
Although many offices within the Department of Education experienced major cuts, the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) experienced more than most. Because of this, the already lengthy processing time for FAFSA applications is expected to be drawn out even more, potentially (and likely) into the Fall 2025 semester. This means that thousands of students could be unable to meet tuition deadlines, impacting their ability to enroll in classes, which subsequently affects their ability to stay in higher education. As a public institution, the University of Michigan is likely to experience this delay more acutely, as a greater proportion of students are on financial aid compared to private universities.
This particular effect of the mass firing is likely to affect low-income students the most, as they most heavily rely on financial aid. First-generation students who may have more trouble navigating the bureaucratic red tape already associated with federal financial aid will also be disproportionately affected.
2. Civil Rights in Education
According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), President Trump’s mass firing caused total staff termination in seven of the twelve regional offices of the Office of Civil Rights (OCR). This is highly alarming for several reasons.
Firstly, OCR stands as the primary protection against discrimination in education. These protections are race, gender, disability, color, age, national origin, and sex-based, and therefore affect every single student in the United States. Without OCR to stand as a type of watchdog against discrimination, students across the country are more likely to experience inequity enabled by prejudice.
Secondly, the closed OCR offices in Chicago, Philadelphia, New York City, Dallas, Boston, San Francisco, and Cleveland oversaw half of the states. Their shuttering means 60,000 public schools and over 30 million K-12 students are now unserved, and the remaining five offices are woefully unprepared for their increased workload.
Finally, with OCR eviscerated on every level, it has become much harder for students to seek justice when they experience discriminatory practices. Hundreds of those fired were civil rights attorneys, whose cases—many of which have been going on for years—are now closed because of multiple offices shutting down.
Every single student in the United States is affected by this aspect of Trump’s cuts to the Department of Education. OCR, which was an already overloaded department, cannot take on nearly as many student civil rights cases as before. Justice, which could already be delayed, may now never be seen for some students, whether because they feel it is useless to submit their grievances or because the office does not have the staff to carry out their function.
3. Equitable Education
One of President Trump’s key reasons for gutting the Department of Education is so that he can “move education into the states.” However, this is a misleading statement meant to make Americans think that curriculum is designed by the federal government. The Department of Education has never been able to dictate what classrooms teach. What it actually does is far more broad, and is based on creating classroom equity for all types of students in the US.
The Department, for instance, enforces non-discrimination policies in schools, prohibiting them from receiving federal funding if they are found to be noncompliant. This is also enforced through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which allows children to get Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). Arguably most importantly, it disburses billions of dollars to elementary and secondary schools, higher education, vocational education, and more. Without the Department of Education’s division of funds, schools throughout the US would shut down completely—and now, it is an increasing likelihood that they will.
This is another impact that will affect all students in the US, whether they are in kindergarten or their senior year of college. Without funding, many schools, particularly those in rural areas, will be unable to keep their doors open, eliminating what is often the only method of education for their area. There will be no one to enforce anti-discrimination in education between the OCR’s closing and the Department’s inability to restrict funding, which can drastically affect the quality of education between students from even the same towns. No system of education will be left unscathed by Trump’s order.
All in all, the impact of the Department of Education goes far beyond simply educating America’s youth. It is one of the most necessary tools in creating an equitable world for every person in our country. It’s gutting not only affects how we will learn, but who will get to learn. This issue is a multi-faceted one, and will have reverberations for years to come. The only remaining question is how devastating it will be to the development of education in the United States.