President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order aimed at dismantling the Department of Education, fulfilling a campaign promise to return educational authority to state and local governments. While the order has generated significant attention, its immediate effects remain uncertain as only Congress has the authority to fully abolish a federal agency. 

The Department of Education plays a critical role in supporting nearly 18,200 school districts and over 50 million K-12 students across the U.S. Its higher education programs serve more than 12 million students annually. 

President Trump’s directive instructs Education Secretary Linda McMahon 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.”

Redistribution of Programs

Trump has indicated that several key programs will be preserved and transferred to other federal agencies:

1. The Small Business Administration will take charge of the federal student loan portfolio.
2. The Health and Human Services Department will oversee programs related to special needs and nutrition.
3. Other essential programs like Pell Grants and Title I funding will be “fully preserved and transferred” to unspecified departments.

“My administration will take all lawful steps to shut down the department. We’re going to shut it down and shut it down as quickly as possible. It’s doing us no good,” Trump said.

However, the executive order cannot immediately eliminate the department, as that would require congressional approval. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt acknowledged that the Department would not be completely abolished but would become “much smaller than its current size”.

The executive order follows significant staffing reductions at the Department. Earlier in March 2025, the Department of Education reduce its staff to 2,183 employees—nearly half of its January workforce of more than 4,100—under the direction of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency. 

Trump’s reasoning behind eliminating the Department of Education is tied to a lie that the United States ranks last in educational outcomes. 

While his remarks have been repeated in various contexts, they lack a clear basis in internationally recognized assessments.

1. Global Rankings: According to the most recent Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) results from 2022, U.S. students ranked 21st in math, 5th in reading, and tied for 10th in science among OECD countries. These rankings place the U.S. far from the bottom in educational outcomes.
2. Educational Attainment: The U.S. ranks 8th out of 41 countries in educational attainment, with 92% of adults aged 25 to 64 holding at least a high school diploma, significantly above the OECD average of 79%.
3. Spending Per Pupil: While the U.S. spends more per pupil on education than most countries—ranking third globally—it does not achieve commensurate outcomes in some areas, particularly in math performance. However, this does not equate to being “last” or ranked 40th overall.

The Department of Education: Roles and Responsibilities

To understand the potential impact of this executive order, it’s crucial to recognize what the Department of Education actually does—and doesn’t do.

What the Department Does

Established in 1980 under President Jimmy Carter, the Department of Education currently operates with approximately 4,400 employees and a $68 billion budget. Despite having the smallest staff among Cabinet agencies, it manages the third-largest discretionary budget in the federal government.

The Department’s primary responsibilities include:

1. Administering and overseeing federal student loan programs, managing a $1.6 trillion student loan portfolio for more than 40 million Americans.
2. Distributing approximately $18 billion in Title I funding to schools in economically disadvantaged areas.
3. Issuing Pell Grants to help low- and middle-income students pay for college.
4. Administering the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which enables students to apply for loans, grants, and other college aid.
5. Enforcing civil rights laws in educational settings, including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, Title IX of the Education Amendments, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, which prohibit discrimination based on race, sex, and disability respectively.
6. Collecting and disseminating data and research on America’s schools.
7. Supporting equal access initiatives to help disadvantaged students.

What the Department Doesn’t Do

Contrary to some perceptions, the Department of Education does not dictate school curriculums, which have traditionally been managed by state and local educational districts. Education policy in the United States operates under a principle of federalism, with primary authority resting with states and local communities. The federal government’s role has historically focused on providing funding, ensuring equal access, and protecting civil rights rather than controlling curriculum content.

Impacts on States and School Districts

The executive order’s emphasis on transferring “educational authority back to state and local governments” raises significant questions about the future of federal education funding.

According to Gov. JB Pritzker’s office, dismantling the Department of Education would set back schools and students in Illinois by creating uncertainty about the federal administration due to potential cuts to:

• Federal Education Funding: Public schools in Illinois are expecting $3.56 billion in federal funds in Fiscal Year 2025 serving 1.8 million students, accounting for $1,923 per student. ​
• Special Education Funding: Illinois is expecting to use $1.33 billion in federal funding in Fiscal Year 2025 to support more than 295,000 children receiving special education services.
• Pell Grants: In the 2023-2024 academic year, more than 225,000 students in Illinois received over $1 billion in Pell Grants to assist with educational expenses. Pell Grants help make college more affordable and accessible for students from low-income households, contributing to the economic mobility of students and families across our state.
• Student Loan Programs: Illinois has 1.6 million student loan borrowers who rely on the federal government to ensure affordable monthly payments and timely processing of applicable loan forgiveness programs. Dismantling the Department of Education threatens to send Illinois’ most vulnerable borrowers into default.

Impacts on Children and Students

The potential dissolution of the Department of Education could significantly affect K-12 students, particularly those who rely on specialized federal programs.

Special Education and Disadvantaged Students

Federal funding plays a crucial role in supporting special education services and programs for disadvantaged students. National Education Association President Becky Pringle claimed that cuts to the Department would increase class sizes, cut job training programs, eliminate special education for those with disabilities, axe civil rights protections and increase college tuition prices, putting it out of reach for middle class families.

Civil rights advocates are particularly concerned about the enforcement of anti-discrimination laws in educational settings. The Department’s Office for Civil Rights currently investigates complaints and ensures compliance with federal civil rights laws. Without this oversight, some fear that protections for vulnerable student populations could be weakened.

Impacts on College Students and Student Loans

Perhaps the most immediate concern for millions of Americans relates to the management of federal student loans and financial aid programs.

Student Loan Administration

On March 21, 2025, the day after signing the executive order, President Trump announced that the Small Business Administration (SBA) would take over management of the federal student loan portfolio. 

“We have a portfolio that is very large, lots of loans, tens of thousands of loans, pretty complicated deal,” Trump said, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office. “That’s coming out of the Department of Education immediately.”

“They’re all set for it,” the president said of the SBA. “They’re waiting for it.”

Outstanding federal education debt has surpassed $1.6 trillion, with over 40 million Americans holding student loans. This shift in responsibility to the Small Business Administration (SBA) has raised significant concerns regarding its ability to manage such a large and intricate portfolio. 

Potential Disruptions for Borrowers

Experts warn that transferring the student loan system could disrupt loan forgiveness and repayment programs. Additionally, the FAFSA application process, which millions of students rely on annually, could face disruptions during any transition period.

Beth Maglione, NASFAA’s Interim President and CEO, said, “Dissolving the Department of Education — or starving it of resources — won’t eliminate the need to administer its programs. Federal student aid programs enshrined in law — including Pell Grants and campus-based aid like Federal Work-Study — must still be managed, loans must be serviced, and the FAFSA must be updated and maintained each year.

Given what we know about large-scale federal changes that involve complex systems and technology, it seems highly unlikely that untangling and redistributing the work of an entire agency would proceed without disruption for our nation’s students and colleges, particularly when the federal workforce tasked with carrying this out has just been decimated.

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.

American families and college students need financial aid that is accessible, predictable, and reliable. Creating chaos and uncertainty in the agency that oversees the administration of those funds is not the way to achieve that.

If there is a plan to reassign or redistribute this critical work performed by the Department and prevent disruptions for students, families, and the nation’s institutions of higher education, we ask the administration to share it immediately.”