Red state education officials eager for end of Department of Education
Republican states are embracing the idea of a future with no federal Department of Education, preparing plans for its Trump-promised demise and voicing confidence their own agencies can pick up the slack.
President Trump has long called for the dismantling of the Education Department, and he's reportedly eyeing executive actions to gut its major functions while simultaneously pushing lawmakers to perform the coup de grâce.
The heads of the education departments in multiple GOP-led states describe the move as a potential opportunity to get rid of red tape around funding and burdensome reporting requirements on their schools.
The Trump administration is “providing states greater control over the education of the children in their states,” said Frank Edelblut, the Republican commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Education.
Each state has “different needs in order to serve our communities, to meet the educational objectives and needs of our children in our state,” Edelblut said. “And so, we may have to do things differently. And so, I think, really, the conversation around providing states greater control over education is a really important and a healthy one.”
Megan Degenfelder, Wyoming’s GOP state superintendent of public instruction, said that Trump following through on the promise to eliminate the department "really aligns with my belief that education policy should be returned to the States, allowing for more localized and effective decision-making."
The long-running fight over the federal department exploded last week after reports of Trump’s plans came to light and Democratic lawmakers were locked out of the agency's headquarters as they were demanding a meeting with the acting secretary to discuss what the plans are inside the department.
Linda McMahon, Trump's pick for Education secretary, is scheduled for her confirmation hearing on Thursday, and the potential destruction of her would-be job is sure to be a leading topic of senators' questions.
While the Department of Education only makes up around 10 percent of K-12 school funding, it also runs numerous programs to assist states and protect students.
Democrats' concerns around GOP plans for the department include future cuts and changes to programs such as Title I, which helps disadvantage schools, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the department's Office of Civil Rights.
“A productive partnership with and continued funding from the federal government are essential for North Carolina’s students and schools,” said North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction Maurice Green (D).
“About $1.2 billion for North Carolina public schools comes from the U.S. Department of Education annually,” with the majority of funding going to Title I and IDEA, Green added. “The complete loss of this funding would be detrimental to students and result in the loss of thousands of educator jobs.”
But the programs some are most concerned about are the ones that Republican states seem most excited to take over.
Edelblut told The Hill that on Title I, every year he hears from school leaders who “think that the way that those funds are being distributed is not actually serving the best needs of our economically disadvantaged students, and that there may be a better way within the state of New Hampshire to allocate that.”
Trump is reportedly looking to slash Education programs not written into law and vastly cut down the number of employees at the agency.
The Institute of Education Sciences, the research arm of the department, appears to be among the first targeted for cuts, as it recently cancelled 169 government contracts.
Experts speculate that the powerful Office of Civil Rights, which investigates discrimination cases against schools, could be moved inside the Department of Justice.
“I think it would be helpful to alleviate the burdensome reporting” that office currently requires “and allow school administrators to focus on being instructional leaders,” said Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Susie Hedalen (R), adding that the reports schools are made to fill out for the federal department are on top of the “intense program” Montana already has for the issue through their own attorney general’s office.
"We're already ensuring that things are being handled appropriately, and those [federal] reports are often very out-of-date and and not actually helpful in our work,” Hedalen said.
Ryan Walters, the Republican state superintendent for Oklahoma who has vocally embraced Trump's agenda, is particularly looking forward to taking charge of the nutrition of his schools and special education.
“Special education has been one where the federal government continues to put red tape on this, and instead of helping those kids with special needs [...] it becomes all this red tape,” said Walters, who used to work in a special education classroom. “It becomes all this paperwork, rather than telling states, ‘Listen, you need to make sure that these kids are getting a great education.’”
The Hill reached out to the education departments in all 50 states for this story. Most either didn't respond or declined to comment, with many saying they were waiting for more concrete plans on the matter from the federal government.
Trump’s promise to eliminate the Department of Education is not possible without an act of Congress.
And although Republicans in both the House and the Senate have introduced bills to do just that, it is unlikely members get 60 votes in the Senate to move the legislation to Trump’s desk.
Republicans argue the evidence states should take over is plain in the scores of students around the country.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) recently showed students are still behind in reading and math, and that the gap between high-performing and low-performing students is widening.
"When it comes to education, we've seen the federal department’s significant spending power just hasn't translated into adequate academic results, and this is evidenced by the widening achievement gap and declining reading scores that we saw on the NAEP release just two weeks ago,” said Degenfelder.
Degenfelder says she has confidence in the leadership at the federal Department of Education in following Trump’s directives and changing the agency.
“I really anticipate having more flexibility to use federal funding to best meet the needs of Wyoming students and so without the red tape and bureaucracy from D.C., but receiving that funding in more of a block grant method,” she added. “Then we can more effectively use those funds in ways that we know is going to work best in our state.”
-
Aguilar says Democrats would oppose spending bill with Department of Education cuts
Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., said that House Democrats would vote against a government funding bill if it included cuts to the Department of Education. Aguilar claimed Republicans "don't care about ...NBC News - 20h -
House Dems physically denied entry to Education Department building
Politico - 4d -
Research arm of Education Department sees cuts after DOGE review
The Institute of Education Sciences (IES), the research arm of the Department of Education, is facing funding cuts as it cancels more than 160 contracts. The American Educational Research ...The Hill - 23h -
Advice for student loan borrowers amid uncertainty surrounding U.S. Department of Education
President Trump is seeking to dismantle the Department of Education with the help of billionaire Elon Musk, potentially causing major disruptions for Americans paying student loans. CBS News ...CBS News - 23h -
Black educators warn of what is lost if Education Department is shuttered
Black educators are sounding the alarm as President Trump ramps up talk of eliminating the Department of Education. Trump, who has long called for the Education Department to be shut down, said in ...The Hill - 2d -
Democratic Lawmakers Denied Entry to the Department of Education
It was the fourth agency this week that federal employees blocked congressional Democrats from entering amid a push to shutter government agencies and dramatically cut the federal work force.The New York Times - 3d -
House Democrats denied entry into Department of Education building
Several Democratic lawmakers were denied access to the Department of Education on Friday. The Trump administration has made it clear that it seeks to abolish the department.NBC News - 3d -
Inside DOGE's takeover of the Education Department
Members of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency team have obtained “administrator” email accounts at the Department of Education.NBC News - 4d -
House Democrats denied entry to the Department of Education
Democratic members of Congress were denied entry to the Department of Education for a meeting with acting Secretary Denise Carter when a security officer would not allow them inside.NBC News - 4d
More from The Hill
-
Rubio: Marc Fogel release ‘good sign’ for cooperation with Putin end Ukraine war
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the release of American Marc Fogel from Russian captivity is a “good sign” for the U.S. and Russian President Vladimir Putin to work in cooperation to end the ...The Hill - 28m -
Democrats should expect to keep losing in 2026
Democrats are arguably weaker than they have been since Obama won the presidency in 2008.The Hill - 32m -
Education report reveals which states have seen biggest drops in reading, math scores
While some schools are starting to claw back some of the ground lost due to pandemic-era learning disruptions, but there's still a ways to go, a new report finds.The Hill - 36m -
Jailed Russian released in US in exchange for Marc Fogel: Kremlin
The Kremlin said early Wednesday that American Marc Fogel's release came in conjunction with the Trump administration granting freedom to a Russian citizen held in a U.S. prison — though they were ...The Hill - 1h -
California disclosure law prompting manufacturers to shift away from toxic compounds: Study
Manufacturers have been quietly abandoning the use of toxic ingredients in their products, in response to California's strict chemical disclosure rules, a new study has found. By promoting ...The Hill - 1h
More in Politics
-
Rubio: Marc Fogel release ‘good sign’ for cooperation with Putin end Ukraine war
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the release of American Marc Fogel from Russian captivity is a “good sign” for the U.S. and Russian President Vladimir Putin to work in cooperation to end the ...The Hill - 28m -
Democrats should expect to keep losing in 2026
Democrats are arguably weaker than they have been since Obama won the presidency in 2008.The Hill - 32m -
Education report reveals which states have seen biggest drops in reading, math scores
While some schools are starting to claw back some of the ground lost due to pandemic-era learning disruptions, but there's still a ways to go, a new report finds.The Hill - 36m -
Jailed Russian released in US in exchange for Marc Fogel: Kremlin
The Kremlin said early Wednesday that American Marc Fogel's release came in conjunction with the Trump administration granting freedom to a Russian citizen held in a U.S. prison — though they were ...The Hill - 1h -
California disclosure law prompting manufacturers to shift away from toxic compounds: Study
Manufacturers have been quietly abandoning the use of toxic ingredients in their products, in response to California's strict chemical disclosure rules, a new study has found. By promoting ...The Hill - 1h