Mr Trump has frequently discussed plans to dismantle the US Department of Education since his campaign and said by September 2024 he wants to cut the federal government's influence over education to "end the abuse of taxpayer dollars to indoctrinate America's youth".
“Everybody knows that’s true, and we have to educate our children,” Mr. Trump said on Thursday. “We’re not doing well with the education world in this country, and we haven’t been doing well for a long time.”
US President Donald Trump signs an executive order to dissolve the US Department of Education with students at the White House. Photo: White House
A White House fact sheet on the executive order said the directive aims to “transfer education to families rather than bureaucracies” and directs Education Secretary Linda McMahon to “take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return educational authority to the states, while continuing to ensure the effective and uninterrupted delivery of the services, programs, and benefits that the American people rely on.”
The White House also argues that the Education Department is a waste of money, citing mediocre test scores, disappointing literacy rates and poor math skills among students as evidence that the trillion-dollar investment in the agency is a poor return.
However, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday morning that the executive order would not completely shut down the agency but would “significantly scale it back.”
Students at the event. Photo: White House
On Thursday, President Trump said he would still seek to close the department entirely and wanted Education Secretary Linda McMahon, who attended the White House event, to voluntarily resign.
The U.S. Department of Education oversees about 100,000 public schools and 34,000 private schools in the United States, although more than 85 percent of public school funding comes from state and local governments. The department provides federal grants to schools and programs in need, including money to pay teachers for children with special needs, fund arts programs, and replace outdated infrastructure.
The agency also oversees $1.6 trillion in student loans held by tens of millions of Americans who cannot afford college tuition.
For now, Mr. Trump’s executive order aims to narrow the department down to basic functions like managing student loans, subsidizing mechanisms to help low-income students attend college and resources for children with special needs.
Hoang Huy (according to WH, Fox News, Reuters)
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