President Aims to Shut Down Department of Education for Local Control
Published Date: 3/25/2025
Presidential Document
Summary
The President wants to shut down the Department of Education to give parents, states, and communities more control over schools. This change aims to fix low student scores and improve how student loans are handled, affecting millions of families and students. The plan signals big shifts in education funding and management starting soon, with hopes to make schools work better for everyone.
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Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 1 costs, 2 mixed.
Close Department of Education; Return to States
The President ordered the Secretary of Education to take all appropriate steps to facilitate closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the States, in Executive Order 14242 dated March 20, 2025. The order requires the Secretary to do this while ensuring the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits. The order cites federal education spending of about $200 billion during the COVID-19 pandemic and more than $60 billion spent annually as context.
Student Loan Functions Reassigned or Returned
The order states the Department of Education currently manages a Federal student loan portfolio of more than $1.6 trillion and that the Office of Federal Student Aid has fewer than 1,500 employees. It directs returning ‘‘bank functions’’ to an entity equipped to serve students and to improve program implementation in higher education.
Federal Funds Must End Certain DEI and 'Gender Ideology' Programs
The Secretary must ensure that allocation of Department of Education funds complies with Federal law and Administration policy, including a requirement that any program or activity receiving Federal assistance terminate illegal discrimination 'obscured under the label "diversity, equity, and inclusion"' or similar terms and programs 'promoting gender ideology.'
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