Trump ordered the dismantling of the Education Department. But it's not closing entirely.
The immediate impact of the directive remains unclear given that fully dissolving the department would require action from Congress.
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday afternoon aimed at dismantling the U.S. Department of Education, laying the groundwork for the most contentious and far-reaching battlefront in his fight to push the bounds on presidential authority.
The immediate impact of the directive remains unclear, however, given that fully dissolving the department, created by Congress in 1979, would require action from Congress.
Though the White House continues to use words like "close," an official acknowledged that the department would continue operating in some form ‒ albeit as a significantly smaller agency ‒ and continue to administer "critical programs."
The Trump administration has shown it is willing to ignore laws set by Congress to cut federal programs through Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency and dismantle entire agencies such as the U.S. Agency for International Development. Those efforts, however, have hit roadblocks in federal court.
Bracing for a total upheaval of the department, the head of a leading teachers union promised to sue the Trump administration over the action.
Here's what we know:
How does Trump say he'll change the Education Department?
Trump is directing his 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," according to a White House summary of the order, which has been in the works for weeks.
The order simultaneously calls for the "uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely."
Key federal programs for schools, all housed within the Education Department, cannot be removed from the department unless Congress passes laws authorizing such a move.
Can Trump close the Education Department?
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Thursday that the Education Department won't be abolished under Trump’s order but would be “much smaller than it is today,” adding that McMahon intends to “greatly minimize” the agency's size.
Leavitt said the ultimate goal is to have the federal government spend less on public education by cutting “wasteful spending” while protecting "critical programs." She did not identify what the White House determined is waste.
Leavitt said the Education Department has failed to deliver despite spending $3 trillion on education since it was created in 1979. “What has been the return on that investment for the American taxpayer? Levels that are less than ideal, less than proficient,” she said.
What will happen to Title I, IDEA funding and student loans?
Public schools rely on the Education Department to distribute federal education dollars. A major stream comes from Title I, a program that boosts funding to schools serving high-poverty populations.
Leavitt said federal Title I and funding for students with disabilities ‒ as well as Pell Grants and student loans that help students pay for college ‒ will still be administered by the department under the order.
A White House official told Paste BN McMahon intends to work on a plan to "bring these funds closer to states, localities, and, more importantly, students."
Trump has talked about the Small Business Administration or Commerce Department possibly taking over the distribution of student loan payments. That would presumably require action from Congress.
Does Trump's Education Department order eliminate DEI and LGBTQ+ initiatives?
Under the order, education programs or activities that receive "any remaining Department of Education funds" will not be allowed to advance diversity, equity and inclusion or "gender ideology," according to the White House summary.
Eliminating initiatives that promote racial diversity and self-assessed gender identity, rather than two binary sexes, has been a top priority for Trump across the federal government.
Didn't Trump already cut the Education Department workforce?
Trump's long-anticipated order comes after more than 1,300 Education Department employees received termination notices last week as part of large-scale "reductions in force" across the federal government pushed by Musk's DOGE.
Combining layoffs and other types of departures, the Trump administration has trimmed the department's workforce from 4,133 to 2,183 since the start of his second term.
Despite the dramatic downsizing, the agency continues to oversee vital federal funding programs for schools.
What is Trump's justification for abolishing the department?
Republicans have long accused the federal government of holding too much power over local and state education policy, even though the federal government has no control over school curriculum. Trump told reporters last month that he hopes McMahon eventually puts herself "out of a job."
Trump has increasingly criticized the performance of U.S. public schools compared with schools in other countries. "We’re ranked at the very bottom of the list, but we’re at the top of the list in one thing: the cost per pupil," he said last month.
In levying those complaints, Trump and other Republicans have often relied on data from the Education Department's research arm, a branch the administration has reduced to a skeleton staff, which raises questions about tracking school progress in the future.
What does Trump mean when he says he'll give more control of education to states?
Since returning to the White House, Trump has discussed giving states full authority to oversee schools, often singling out Iowa and Indiana as two strongly performing states that "should run their own education."
Looking to stress this concept, Trump signed the order along with several Republican governors and education chiefs. They included: Republican Govs. Ron DeSantis of Florida, Glenn Youngkin of Virginia, Greg Abbott of Texas and Mike DeWine of Ohio.
But it's not entirely clear what Trump means by such an arrangement.
Local school districts and states already control their school curriculums. The federal government, on the other hand, provides limited oversight for schools that receive federal funding to ensure students are being kept safe and treated equally.
Is Congress likely to pass a law closing the Department of Education?
Passing legislation in Congress to eliminate the Department of Education would require support from Democrats, which makes such an effort highly unlikely.
It's unclear whether moderate Republicans in the U.S. Senate would be on board with a Republican proposal to shift the agency's offices elsewhere within the federal government (Trump has begun discussing the idea with his Cabinet anyway).
What do Democrats say about Trump's order seeking to close Education Department?
Congressional Democrats blasted the president for making what they called a blatantly illegal move. Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat and a top funding appropriator, said in a statement Thursday that Trump was taking a "wrecking ball" to the agency despite knowing "perfectly well he can't abolish the Department of Education without Congress."
"But he understands that if you fire all the staff and smash it to pieces, you might get a similar, devastating result," she said.
Advocates for student loan borrowers issued similar critiques.
“Let’s be clear: there’s no Executive Order the President can sign to legally eliminate the Department of Education," said Aaron Ament, president of the National Student Legal Defense Network. "Linda McMahon acknowledged that herself. The real effect of this decree will just be even more hardship and confusion for students and families."