Trump Management โAdvances Plan to Dismantle Education Department
WASHINGTON โ(AP) – In a notable move toward its long-stated goal, teh Trump administration is initiating a series of agreements to transfer keyโ functions of the Department of Education to other federal โagencies, effectively โoutsourcing large portions of the department’s operations. The move, announced today, is โคbeing framed as a test โคcase to demonstrate the viability of operating the nation’s education system without โคa dedicated federal department.
Under the plan, the Office โฃof Elementary and Secondary Education and the Office of โpostsecondaryโ education – twoโ of the Education Department’sโค largest units โฃ- will be largely transferred to other agencies. While oversight of student loan policy and collage accreditation for federal financial aid eligibilityโ will remain within the Education department, the bulk of their responsibilities will beโ dispersed.
Health and Human services will assume controlโข ofโ grant programs for college-attending โparents, as well as management of foreign medical โschool accreditation. The State Department will take over foreign language programs, and the Departmentโข of the Interior will oversee programs relatedโข to Native American education.
The move comes as Education Secretary Betsyโ DeVos โฃandโ others within the administration have โขincreasingly criticized the department’s effectiveness, arguing it has become a “bloated bureaucracy” despite lagging student outcomes. DeVos has publicly campaigned for shuttering theโ department entirely, advocating for greater versatility for states in how they allocate federal education funding, including resources earmarked for literacy and education for homeless students.
However,โ abolishing the department would requireโฃ Congressional approval, โaโ challengeโข elaborate by existing bipartisan support for โsomeโ of its core โfunctions.
A union representing department workers, AFGE Local 252, voiced strong opposition to the plan.”Students, educators and families depend on the agency’s support for schools,” said President Rachelโ Gittleman. “That national mission is weakened when its core functions are scattered โacross other federal or state agencies that are โขnot equipped or positioned to provide the same support and services as ED staff.”
Administration officials say DeVos will continue to tour schools across the country and lobby lawmakers onโ Capitol Hill to build support for her vision.
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