President Donald Trump issued an executive order on March 20 to close the Department of Education, which will reshape federal education policy. The order mandates the redistribution of the department’s functions across multiple federal agencies by the end of the year. However, the department cannot be fully closed without congressional approval.
The department oversees funding for public schools, administers loans, and runs programs that assist low-income students. As one of the smallest cabinet-level departments, it had a $268 billion appropriation last year, representing only 4% of the U.S. budget. The U.S. Education Department has no say in the curriculum, nor does it establish requirements for enrollment or graduation or dictate the selection of resources. However, Trump and his allies have accused the agency of indoctrinating young people with racial, sexual, and political material.
The executive order outlines specific transitions for the key functions:
- Civil rights enforcement will move to the Justice Department.
- Federal student loan programs will move to the Treasury.
- Special education oversight will move to Health and Human Services.
These transitions will affect the management of federal education funding totaling over $150 billion annually:
- $15.5 billion in IDEA funding, supporting 7.3 million students with disabilities.
- $120.8 billion in Federal Student Aid programs, helping 10.8 million students.
- $18.8 billion goes for Title I funding for high-poverty schools, affecting 26 million students.
Educational stakeholders are pushing the importance of ensuring these resources continue without disruption, particularly for disadvantaged students who rely on these programs. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said ahead of the executive order’s signing that “critical programs will be protected” and that, specifically, student loans and federal Pell Grants would continue to be handled. What these cuts would mean for groups who rely on that funding remains one of the bigger questions.
“Dismantling the Department in haste could cripple the government’s ability to accurately distribute billions in federal student aid, putting millions of students at risk-especially low-income students who lack a financial safety net,” Beth Mahlione, interim president and CEO at the National Association of Student Finacial Aid Administrators, said.
The program itself that aids students is not being dismantled, but concerns are with the bandwidth to administrate all the programs.
One aspect detailed in the order says it must comply with federal policy, and programs receiving funding must terminate “illegal discrimination obscured the under the label ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ or similar terms and programs promoting general ideology.” Education advocates worry that the vague language could be used to restrict scholarships or programs that are specifically designed to help underrepresented groups, including students of color, women, and first-generation college students.
Uncertainty about how these changes will be implemented has left many students concerned about financial and academic stability. Without clear guidance, there are fears that students from historically underrepresented backgrounds could be disproportionally affected, potentially reducing access to higher education for those who need assistance the most.
For now, the executive order sets in motion a significant restructuring of federal education oversight. As agencies prepare for the transfer of responsibilities, questions remain about the capacity to manage these programs effectively and the potential implications for millions of students who rely on them. Congress will play a decisive role in determining the future of the Department of Education.