Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order, perhaps as early as today, that will abolish the Department of Education.
The Federal News Network reported that in a draft of a memo, "The department is preparing to notify its employees that President Donald Trump will sign an executive order, entitled, 'Eliminating the Department of Education.’” Education Department staff are working to prepare for the agency's dismantling, including reassigning its functions to other agencies.
The Department of Education was created in 1980 as a government efficiency effort. Education programs were spread throughout the federal government, touching almost every department and many agencies. It was thought that bringing all the education programs together under one roof would save money.
Today, the Department of Education has a budget of $268 billion, and its original mission has been completely warped. It's time the behemoth is slain.
It's not clear if the president has the authority to demolish the department. It was created and funded by Congress, and the courts will not look kindly on Trump's unilateral attempt to get rid of it.
One measure Trump can take is to instruct Education Secretary Linda McMahon to dismantle the agency from within. Reassigning staff and resources is well within the secretary's power. How far she can take it remains to be seen.
This leaked document comes on the heels of McMahon’s striking "Final Mission" message to department employees, delivered just after her Senate confirmation this week. In that memo, McMahon informed staff that she had been tasked with a "momentous final mission" to "send education back to the states" and eliminate "bureaucratic bloat" in the agency. "Our job is to respect the will of the American people and the President they elected, who has tasked us with accomplishing the elimination of bureaucratic bloat here at the Department of Education – a momentous final mission – quickly and responsibly," McMahon wrote the message circulated to all employees.
[…]The Education Secretary emphasized a "new era of accountability" as she oversees Trump’s directive to dismantle the department. Notably, Trump has said he wants McMahon to "put herself out of a job" by permanently closing the Department of Education – underscoring that her ultimate objective as Secretary is to work herself out of a role.
Returning control over schools to the 50 states will be a chaotic process. Some programs currently run by the Education Department will not be funded in every state. The Education Department mandated instruction for kids with handicaps, intellectual disabilities, and other children with problems. States will be under no obligation to educate these kids, which was one reason the Department of Education was created in the first place.
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Overall, state control of education will be a plus. Activists and some parents will howl with anguish when some pet programs are eliminated or aren't carried over to the states. The solution is to work locally and with state education boards to fill in any gaps that occur as a result of the elimination of the Education Department.
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