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Trump EO to Close Education Department 03/20 06:03

   President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order Thursday calling for 
the shutdown of the U.S. Education Department, according to a White House 
official, advancing a campaign promise to eliminate an agency that's been a 
longtime target of conservatives.

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order 
Thursday calling for the shutdown of the U.S. Education Department, according 
to a White House official, advancing a campaign promise to eliminate an agency 
that's been a longtime target of conservatives.

   The official spoke on the condition of anonymity before an announcement.

   Trump has derided the Department of Education as wasteful and polluted by 
liberal ideology. However, finalizing its dismantling is likely impossible 
without an act of Congress, which created the department in 1979.

   A White House fact sheet said the order would direct Secretary Linda McMahon 
"to take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure (of) the Department of 
Education and return education authority to the States, while continuing to 
ensure the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and 
benefits on which Americans rely."

   Trump's Republican administration has already been gutting the agency. Its 
workforce is being slashed in half, and there have been deep cuts to the Office 
for Civil Rights and the Institute of Education Sciences, which gathers data on 
the nation's academic progress.

   Advocates for public schools said eliminating the department would leave 
children behind in an American education system that is fundamentally unequal.

   "This isn't fixing education. It's making sure millions of children never 
get a fair shot. And we're not about to let that happen without a fight," the 
National Parents Union said in a statement.

   The White House has not spelled out formally which department functions 
could be handed off to other departments, or eliminated altogether. At her 
confirmation hearing, McMahon said she would preserve core initiatives, 
including Title I money for low-income schools and Pell grants for low-income 
college students. The goal of the administration, she said, would be "a better 
functioning Department of Education."

   The department sends billions of dollars a year to schools and oversees $1.6 
trillion in federal student loans.

   Currently, much of the agency's work revolves around managing money -- both 
its extensive student loan portfolio and a range of aid programs for colleges 
and school districts, from school meals to support for homeless students. The 
agency also plays a significant role in overseeing civil rights enforcement.

   Federal funding makes up a relatively small portion of public school budgets 
-- roughly 14%. The money often supports supplemental programs for vulnerable 
students, such as the McKinney-Vento program for homeless students or Title I 
for low-income schools.

   Colleges and universities are more reliant on money from Washington, through 
research grants along with federal financial aid that helps students pay their 
tuition.

   Republicans have talked about closing the Education Department for decades, 
saying it wastes taxpayer money and inserts the federal government into 
decisions that should fall to states and schools. The idea has gained 
popularity recently as conservative parents' groups demand more authority over 
their children's schooling.

   In his platform, Trump promised to close the department "and send it back to 
the states, where it belongs." Trump has cast the department as a hotbed of 
"radicals, zealots and Marxists" who overextend their reach through guidance 
and regulation.

   At the same time, Trump has leaned on the Education Department to promote 
elements of his agenda. He has used investigative powers of the Office for 
Civil Rights and the threat of withdrawing federal education funding to target 
schools and colleges that run afoul of his orders on transgender athletes 
participating in women's sports, pro-Palestinian activism and diversity 
programs.

   Even some of Trump's allies have questioned his power to close the agency 
without action from Congress, and there are doubts about its political 
popularity. The House considered an amendment to close the agency in 2023, but 
60 Republicans joined Democrats in opposing it.

   During Trump's first term, former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos sought to 
dramatically reduce the agency's budget and asked Congress to bundle all K-12 
funding into block grants that give states more flexibility in how they spend 
federal money. It was rejected, with pushback from some Republicans.

 
 
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