On March 20, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to “facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the states and local communities,” which began the process of dismantling the Department of Education.
“My administration will take all lawful steps to close the department. We are going to shut it down as quickly as possible. “It’s not doing us any good,” Trump said during the signing ceremony, which included McMahon.
The White House has stated that the federal student loan program and the Title I program, which assists high-poverty school districts, will not be affected.
Fiona Reynolds, a Marshall junior majoring in elementary education, believes that the executive order will present challenges for current and future educators.
“First and foremost, I believe funding is an important issue,” Reynolds said. “The federal government pays for approximately 10% of a state’s education budget. Sure, 10% doesn’t sound like much, but it’s hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
Reynolds stated that with cuts already made to various educational programs across the state, it all comes down to money.
“We’re already seeing that here in West Virginia; they’ve cut the career literacy programs,” says Reynolds. “They are no longer required to have gifted education in the middle schools, and they’re cutting special education programs, and that creates barriers for educators who are looking for jobs.”
Reynolds stated that the funding cuts resulting from the dismantling of the Department of Education will have a negative impact on student success and available resources.
“Education is the foundation for success, and if we cut funding, teachers, and resources, these students will struggle. “If we don’t provide them with the resources they need to succeed, they won’t be successful later in life,” Reynolds said.
According to Reynolds, the order will have a significant impact on already underserved communities and exacerbate existing educational gaps.
“I really do think that it will have a tremendous impact on our education system and, particularly, those people who are already underserved,” Reynolds informed the crowd. “I think the gap is going to widen.”
Hilary Brewster, an English professor, said she was not surprised by the executive order.
“My initial reaction is probably not fit to print, but I was not surprised because this was very clearly outlined in Project 2025, which has been the guiding instrument for this administration,” Brewster told reporters. “I was not surprised because anybody paying attention knew it was going to happen.”
“My second reaction was a mix of anger, fear, disgust and dread, really,” she told me.
Brewster said she strongly opposes McMahon’s appointment as secretary of education.
“I also want it stated on the record that the fact that Linda McMahon is the secretary of education is so unbelievably, comically laughable that it almost does not bear commentary,” Brewster told reporters. “I would not, with all of my qualifications, consider myself qualified to be the secretary of education, let alone the former president of the WWE.”
Brewster believes the executive order is part of the administration’s strategy to attack and undermine education and educational equity.
“Going after teachers, education curricula and school, especially focusing on students with learning disabilities, is literally a play out of the fascist playbook,” according to Brewster. “One of the first things authoritarian governments do is target professors. J.D. Vance has stated that professors are the enemy.
Because West Virginia relies on the Department of Education to help manage gaps in educational resources and funding, Brewster believes the Department of Education’s elimination will have a particularly negative impact.
“States like West Virginia are going to be hit harder by the elimination of the Department of Education because the Department of Education sort of steps in to fill the gaps, whether that’s in funding or resources or just in making sure that various standards and policies that pertain to equity are abided by the local system,” according to Brewster.
Brewster also stated that the elimination of the Department of Education will have an impact on students with learning disabilities because there will be no body to oversee compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
“This will affect students with learning disabilities because there will be no oversight of the IDEA ruling. “This will have an impact on students of color and students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds,” Brewster explained.
According to Brewster, the order will likely result in a reduction in staff and resources, as well as larger class sizes.
“We are going to see not only a reduction in staff, which is already happening in West Virginia but a reduction of resources,” Brewster predicted. “Class sizes are going to get bigger; materials to help students learn in the 21st century are already at a premium and less available for marginalized students from districts that are from an economic area that has more barriers.”
Brewster expressed her displeasure with people who have no background in education being put in charge of overseeing education.
“It is deeply frustrating, especially about this administration, but just politicians in general, that people with absolutely zero expertise in the art and science of education are the people making the decisions,” according to Brewster.
