Dismantling the Department of Education Would Hasten Us into a New Dark Age

AAUP president Todd Wolfson issued the following statement in response to reports that President Trump is preparing to sign an order that would instruct Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to begin dismantling the Department of Education.

The proposed dismantling of the Department of Education would have devastating impacts for American families. Workers, students, and families in every state—red states and blue—will be hurt if this is achieved.

The department has played a crucial role in the pathway to higher education for millions of Americans by providing and administering student loans, grants, and work-study programs. Without it, access to education for working class Americans will decrease. Funding for college education will be stripped away and programs for students with disabilities and students living in poverty will be eviscerated. Enforcement of civil rights laws against race- or sex-based discrimination in higher education will disappear.

The ED also funds institutions that educate historically underserved populations, including Black, Latino, and Deaf students; provides grants that support student access and success; collects and publishes key data about higher education; and plays a role in accreditation of colleges and universities.

These are programs that the American people want and benefit from. Like many other Trump administration initiatives, this one is evidently designed to undermine our country’s commitment to providing opportunities for all. Eliminating the ED would hurt everyday Americans while benefiting partisan politicians and private corporations who can take over profitable aspects of the agency’s operations and act with fewer guardrails.

As American education reformer Horace Mann once said, “Education, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance wheel of the social machinery.” This message is as vital today as it was in the 19th century. The abolishment of the Department of Education and the continued reckless defunding of public education is a clear path to setting America back in technology, innovation, and competitiveness. Congress can and must stand up for the American people and stop the destruction of our federal education system.