As the Trump Administration closes its second month in power, the future of the Department of Education is uncertain.
Created in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter’s administration with the purpose of providing funding to public schools, it has been made a target among conservatives in recent years. President Trump made a promise on the campaign trail to dismantle the department, and signed an executive order to do so on March 20.
The department’s mission is “to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access for students of all ages,” as stated on its official website.
Newly confirmed Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, wife of WWE co-founder Vince McMahon, recently laid out her plan for what’s next for public schools across America. This includes what she called “Our Department’s Final Mission,” which aims to prevent students from being “subjected to radical anti-American ideology” taught in schools, likely referring to topics like LGBTQ+ rights.
The Department of Education has no control over what is taught in schools. However, this is a small part of an ongoing battle against supposed “wokeness” in the school system. This has students and teachers in GJHS, among other Colorado schools as well, wondering if and how this will directly affect them.
If this decision by Trump to dismantle the department does work, lower-income students would lose access to Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), and funding for schools would depend entirely on which state they are located in.
“It will be detrimental to a lot of families. For many students [FAFSA] is the only way college is in their grasp, through financial aid,” said GJHS counselor Meghan Ventling.
During the 2020-21 election cycle, approximately 17.8 million FAFSAs were submitted according to Bankrate. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, over 85 percent of students rely on some form of financial aid.
If the department no longer exists, the biggest hope for FAFSA is that it could be reallocated to a different department, but the Trump Administration has been very vague about what will happen. It has been made very clear by McMahon and Trump that they intend to end the department altogether, but this is happening with significant pushback from Democrats, students, and likely some Republicans as well.
