Is Closing the US Department of Education a Good Idea? | American Enterprise Institute

Two months into his second term, President Trump signed an executive order directing the US Department of Education (ED) to begin shutting itself down. A year and a half later, the administration has made significant progress toward this goal, and Secretary of Education Linda McMahon calls eliminating ED her “final mission.”

This comes after decades of Republican opposition to ED, which was established in 1979. Ronald Reagan attempted to shutter the department during his first term. So did House Speaker Newt Gingrich in the mid-90s. The list of Republican presidential candidates who called for eliminating or substantially downsizing the federal agency is long and includes Bob Dole, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Mike Pence, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and Ron DeSantis. Trump has pushed the cause further than anyone.

While Trump doesn’t have the votes in Congress to fully eliminate the department, his administration has done what it can and more than many anticipated. ED has announced several interagency agreements to shift certain federal education programs to other departments, such as student loans to Treasury, special education to Health and Human Services, civil rights enforcement to the DOJ, and workforce development to Labor. Secretary McMahon has suggested that these agreements will function as “proof of concept” that other cabinet agencies can better administer programs that are statutorily ED’s.

The Trump administration has made several other attempts, with varying levels of success, to shrink the federal role in education:

• In spring 2025, DOGE slashed about half of ED’s staff, shrinking it from 4,000 to 2,000 employees, and canceled over $800 million in research contracts from ED’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES).
• In summer 2025, ED attempted to withhold nearly $7 billion earmarked for schools but reversed course after political backlash.
• In fall 2025, during the 43-day government shutdown, Secretary McMahon tried to lay off hundreds more ED employees but was blocked by a federal judge.
• Over the past year, ED issued waivers and formal agreements to give new flexibility and discretion in how 28 states use federal education funds.

All of these efforts point to the same goal: scale down the US Department of Education in an attempt to eventually eliminate it. Unsurprisingly, opinions differ strongly on whether either the scaling down or the elimination of ED is a good idea.

Opponents argue that these efforts will harm students and schools. For instance, some advocates point out that unlike ED’s Office for Civil Rights, the DOJ can pick and choose which civil rights claims to review, meaning some families might struggle to be heard. Some worry that the interagency agreements will create more confusion and bureaucracy than efficiency. Others express concern that the National Assessment for Educational Progress, a crucial measure of students’ academic achievement, might suffer due to the reduction in staff. 

Becky Pringle, president of the nation’s largest teachers union, has stated, “The Trump administration has abandoned students, parents, and educators across the nation.” The American Association of University Professors has declared, “This administration is actively sabotaging the future of American college students.”

Supporters contend that these changes are a win for students and federalism. They argue that federal involvement in education can lead to burdensome mandates and regulations for schools, contributing to administrative bloat and hindering local governance. Others suggest that ED has become a one-stop shop for teachers unions and other interest groups’ influence peddling and that dispersing its functions among different federal agencies could reduce power broking. All of this is in service of the administration’s mantra: “returning education to the states.”

Additionally, ED has some proven successes despite a dramatically reduced staff. In the past two years, it revamped the federal Charter School Program, rolled out new IES research grant competitions, and launched the 2026–27 FAFSA ahead of schedule (after the Biden administration’s botched rollout).

There are a lot of subplots here, and they often monopolize public attention and preclude a candid discussion on the core question: Should we close the US Department of Education? Would shuttering ED have serious benefits for American education or cause serious harm?

That is a debate worth having, and we will host it on Wednesday, September 2, live at AEI. Four experts, who are all current or former ED officials, will argue the motion, “We should close the US Department of Education.” If you’re curious about what eliminating ED could mean for American schools and colleges, we hope that you’ll join.