Why Dismantle the US Department of Education? The Answer Should Frighten Us Mightily

Last night, we held our monthly meeting of the Virtual Teachers Lounge (VTL), a non-partisan group that gives educators across the K-12 landscape a safe space in which to share what is going on in their classrooms, their schools and their districts. The VTL was created during the Pandemic, when brick and mortar teacher lounges were shuttered, and educators needed a safe place to convene with other educators. There are six of us who form the VTL leadership core. We offer our online venue for free. All educators, from across the globe, are welcome to attend. You can find us at www.vtl4today.com.

Usually, our monthly get-togethers are dialogic. We offer monthly tips (based on the acknowledged themes/holidays of the month in question that can be used in classrooms). Then, we pose a prompt or two (in advance or on the spot) and converse and share. About 25–50 people attend each month.

Last night was different. I had agreed, since I worked in the Department of Education (7th floor for those in the know) during the Obama Administration, to share what the cratering of the US Department of Education means for schools, teachers and students … and yes, States. To that end, I prepared a slide deck that I said was available to any registrant after the event. The PowerPoints detailed, as best as I was able, what the Department of Education does (did) and the impact being felt now (in real time) and down the road by the massive cuts of a wide ranging sort (of $$ and people) across the nation.

The presentation was intended to be, and I think was, factual. Many people, educators included, actually do not know all or even some of what the Department of Education does (did) at the micro, meso and macro levels. It is hard to do an impact analysis of its demise if the actual role/functions of the Department are not understood.

After the description of the major work fields within the Department, I provided a sampling of just some of the impacts of the current cuts and cutbacks, particularly on teachers (given we are the Virtual TEACHERS Lounge). (I did note other impacts on students that can be felt beyond those being engendered by the Department of Education cuts.) I then detailed some of the current efforts to reverse the cuts both within and outside the legal arena.

Just the facts.

It was only at the very end of the presentation that I shared possible additional approaches in which VTL and individuals and organizations could engage to stem the harms being wrought on literally millions upon millions of students and teachers.

The Question

In the chat (which we run simultaneously during the sessions), one attendee asked this: What explains the Administration’s behavior with respect to education writ large and the Department of Education in particular? The comment added: “It can’t just be saving money.” What a good question and I answered it last night.

But, I want to answer it even more fully here for all to read and ponder. Call this an expanded version of what I shared on VTL last evening.

My answer is formed on the basis of my in-the-trenches experiences in education (from early childhood to adult) over decades but also what I have seen, heard and read of late, including most particularly a stunning article by Harvard Law School Professor Jeanne Suk Gersen that appeared on April 15, 2025 in The New Yorker. (I am sharing a link to that article with VTL attendees when they receive the slide deck.)

The Suk Gersen article is focused on higher education; I am applying many of its ideas to the pre-K through 12 arena and the Department of Education itself.

The Whys

Let me start by saying that the dismantling within education is not about saving money, although some monies may be saved short-term. Nor is the dismantling about stopping antisemitism. Both savings (streamlining the federal bureaucracy) and a rooting out of deep seeded antisemitism are the commonly cited explanations for what is occurring when “our” current leaders seek to attack educational institutions that serve students both from the US and across the world. Under the guise of savings and promoting antisemitism (and protecting Jewish students), there is an effort to increase the “policing” of schools, colleges and universities in the name of eradicating discrimination.

But, here’s the point: The actual goals are not as described and articulated. There is a much deeper and I’d say perverse set of explanations for why the US government is trashing federal education supports and educational institutions themselves. (And yes, the President asked the IRS to revoke Harvard’s non-profit status, an act that no president can do unilaterally, an observation keyed to what follows.)

Here’s my description of what actually undergirds the demise of the US Department of Education. Through profound changes to student grants/loans and the terms of loan repayment, to the virtual eradication of the Office of Civil Rights within the Department of Education, to the almost complete elimination of data collection and research on education and its outcomes, to the stoppage of grants to schools, colleges and universities (including monies already approved but not yet allocated), there is a message: we want (we meaning the current administration) to bring educational institutions “to their knees” (to use Suk Gersen’s term), all in an effort to eradicate what could be termed collectively the “woke” movement.

Let me unravel this. Start here:

The current administration does not like the diversity of views within our educational institutions and believes that “liberal views” have squelched conservative voices. The current administration is not in favor of diversity, equity and inclusion, eradicating its use in both form and substance. The current administration believes the Department of Education fostered curricular influence and impact on state run schools/colleges/universities (although the Department of Education has never had control over curricular decision-making). The current administration does not support free speech, the hallmark of education (and many other values) and one of the reasons for tenure. The current administration believes that the banning of books in schools and libraries and now the military academies will shift ideology away from the support for diverse students and eliminate access to information (knowledge). The current administration wants to “rewrite” history (another denial of information that is true) by eradicating references in books and curricula to racial, ethnic and other struggles, including with respect to LBGTQ. The current administration has made English our nation’s official language, in large part to eliminate programs that support English language learning for students. The current administration sees no need to support teacher education in its many forms financially. The current administration does not perceive the necessity of protecting the most vulnerable among us, including children experiencing food scarcity, disabilities of a wide-ranging sort and lack of mental wellness.

In the administration’s views, all of the above is representative of “wokeness.”

Taken together, the point of dismantling the US Department of Education by this administration is threefold in my view: (1) eradicate “left” leaning ideology including by narrowing substantially access to knowledge and information; (2) give power to the states (particularly Red states), all without oversight so that these state can decide to privilege some students over others with no federal guardrails in place to insure legal compliance with our laws and Constitution; and (3) increase the power of the federal government over both public and private educational institutions (as well as non-profit organizations and BigLaw firms) by illegal threats (monetary and non-monetary) that force compliance because of draconian consequences (real or imagined), authoritarian control in short.

Let me be even clearer: The US Department of Education was created to insure that ALL students, wheresoever located or born and whatever their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and capacity, are treated fairly and equitably and with all the needed protections our laws can provide. There is nuance here for sure in terms of the meaning of taking away dollars, eliminating research and data informed decision-making and potential changes to accreditation standards. But at the meta level, the dismantling of the US Department of Education is an existential threat to our Democracy. Read that again. Yes, when we unwrap the rhetoric and look beneath the surface, the dismantling of the US Department of Education is an existential threat to our Democracy.

That’s frightening.