Six months in, how Trump has changed the Education Department.

Summary

Consider This: Six Months In, How Trump Has Changed the Education Department

Released on July 24, 2025

In this compelling episode of NPR's Consider This, hosts delve into the transformative changes President Trump has enacted within the U.S. Department of Education over the past six months of his second term. Education correspondent Corey Turner provides an in-depth analysis of the administration's strategies, their implications for K-12 and higher education, and the broader impact on American classrooms and students.

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1. Dismantling the Department of Education

President Trump has aggressively pursued his campaign promise to dismantle the Department of Education. Beginning in March, his administration initiated significant staff reductions, aiming to curtail what he deemed an ineffective federal entity.

• Staff Reductions: The department's workforce has been halved through buyouts, early retirements, and the layoff of nearly 1,400 federal employees. Notably, David Downey, a dedicated employee of 30 years, was placed on administrative leave. Downey expressed his concerns, stating, “Our oath to the Constitution, it isn’t going to end when Trump stops the paychecks” (00:52).

• Impact on Operations: With the department operating at half its former capacity, remaining employees are now overburdened, managing multiple roles to maintain essential functions. Corey Turner highlights the critical work being compromised, particularly in safeguarding the rights of students with disabilities.

2. Withholding K-12 Federal Funding

One of the administration's most controversial moves has been the withholding of nearly $5 billion in federal funds designated for K-12 education, originally slated for disbursement by July 1.

• Administration’s Rationale: Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vogt justified the delay, citing “programs that are riddled with critical race theory” and criticizing “school improvement programs that are indoctrinating teachers to be cultural revolutionaries in the classroom” (05:01).

• Superintendent's Response: Sasha Podelski, Director of Advocacy for the School Superintendents Association (AASA), condemned the action as a “bait and switch.” She emphasized that the withheld funds were crucial for teacher salaries, training, and essential academic programs. Podelski warned, “If this funding isn't released soon, three quarters of districts are going to have to eliminate programs that help children improve academically in core subjects like reading and math” (06:09).

• Political Implications: An analysis by New America reveals that Republican-led districts are disproportionately affected, losing 1.6 times more funding per pupil compared to Democrat-led districts (06:20).

3. Consequences for Schools and Students

The abrupt withholding of funds has thrown many school districts into chaos, particularly those in low-income and rural areas. Corey Turner shares insights from interviews with superintendents like Brian Huber of Page County Public Schools:

• Teacher Recruitment and Training: Huber highlighted the struggle to retain experienced teachers, relying instead on less experienced hires who depend on federal funds for necessary training. He poignantly stated, “No one wants to come to work and feel like a failure” (07:16).

• Academic Programs at Risk: Without the funds, critical programs that support academic improvement in reading and math are at risk of being cut, directly impacting students' educational outcomes.

4. Transformations in Higher Education

The Trump administration has not only targeted K-12 but has also extended its scrutiny to higher education institutions.

• Targeting Elite Universities: The administration has launched actions against prestigious universities like Harvard and Columbia University, accusing them of fostering anti-Semitism. Columbia recently agreed to pay a $220 million fine, a move perceived by many as Trump's attempt to position himself against “elite woke liberal universities” (09:26).

• Student Loan Overhaul: In a significant policy shift, Republicans have implemented a comprehensive overhaul of the federal student loan system. While some changes may favor borrowers, the department faces monumental challenges in executing these reforms with its reduced workforce. Corey Turner comments, “My email right now is a swirling vortex of borrower questions” (10:42), underscoring the confusion and frustration among students and former borrowers.

5. Legal Oversight and Special Education

The reduction in Department of Education staff has also impacted legal oversight, particularly for students with disabilities.

• Loss of Advocacy: Attorney Emily Moroli, who advocates for students with disabilities, expressed grave concerns about the future. She warned, “Students with disabilities and their families [may be] left vulnerable and without a mechanism for making sure that their kids are receiving the services that they are legally entitled to and they are morally entitled to” (08:52).

• Erosion of Protections: Without sufficient legal personnel, the department's ability to enforce educational rights is severely diminished, potentially reversing decades of progress in special education.

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Conclusion

As President Trump's administration continues to reshape the Department of Education, the ramifications are felt across the educational landscape. From K-12 funding shortages threatening essential programs to higher education institutions grappling with increased regulatory pressures, the changes signal a significant shift in federal education policy. The reduction in departmental capacity further exacerbates these challenges, leaving educators, students, and families navigating an uncertain future.

Corey Turner's comprehensive reporting underscores the urgency of these developments, highlighting the critical need for stable and adequate funding to support the nation's education system. As the Trump administration's policies unfold, the true impact on American education remains to be fully seen, but the immediate effects are already profound and far-reaching.

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This episode was produced by Katherine Fink, edited by Nicole Cohen and Courtney Dorning, with executive production by Sami Yenigun. For more information and updates, visit NPR's Consider This.

Transcript

[Ailsa Chang]

Back in March, President Trump began carrying out a campaign promise dismantling the Department of Education.

[President Trump]

My administration will take all lawful steps to shut down the department. We're going to shut it down and shut it down as quickly as possible. It's doing us no good. We want to return our students to the states.

[Ailsa Chang]

Well, the department is now about half the size it was before Trump took office. Some employees took buyouts or early retirement. And nearly 1,400 federal workers were laid off, including David Downey. He's worked at the department for 30 years. And in March, he was placed on administrative leave.

[David Downey]

You know, I fell in love with my job somewhere along the line. And I love helping people. And we care. We are your neighbors and our oath to the Constitution, it isn't going to end when Trump stops the paychecks.

[Ailsa Chang]

Downey is concerned about what all of this upheaval will mean for schools and students across the country. He says President Trump's goal of returning education the states is a, quote, bait and switch.

[David Downey]

States already have the voice and the autonomy to make many, many decisions on what their curriculums look like and their hiring and all of that. What they're doing is disenfranchising the students in these states.

[Ailsa Chang]

The administration says the moves give, quote, parents and states control over their children's education. Consider the Trump administration has drastically changed the federal government's role in education. What does that mean for American classrooms? From npr, I'm Ailsa Chang.

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[Corey Turner]

Terms.

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[Ailsa Chang]

It's Consider this from NPR. Federal Education Policy has seen a lot of changes since President Trump's inauguration six months ago. There's the Department of Education itself, which Trump has vowed to close. But that hasn't stopped the Trump administration from also wielding the department's power, most recently by withholding billions of dollars for K through 12 school. We're going to spend the next few minutes looking at the first six months of Trump's second term with NPR education correspondent Corey Turner. Hi, Corey.

[Corey Turner]

Hey, Elsa.

[Ailsa Chang]

Okay, so of all the changes in education policy that you've seen under President Trump this year, which ones do you think have the most far reaching consequences?

[Corey Turner]

Well, there's obviously the effort to close the department itself. You know, between the buyouts, early retirements and the cutting of nearly 1400 employees, the Department currently stands at about half the size it was six months ago. On the higher ed side, there's the administration's high profile fight with Harvard. They're also sweeping changes to student loans. You know, these are all huge stories.

[Ailsa Chang]

Yeah.

[Corey Turner]

The change I want to start with, though, that I think is having the biggest impact right now on K12 Schools is the withholding of federal money that was supposed to be delivered three weeks ago.

[Ailsa Chang]

Wait, say more about that. Like how much are we talking here and why is it being withheld?

[Corey Turner]

Yeah. So as of Today, it's nearly $5 billion. And to be clear, this is not the two biggest, most important funding streams that go to schools that support kids in poverty and kids with disabilities. But this is still a lot of money. And it was already agreed to by Congress back in March. The ed department was supposed to disperse it to schools by July 1, but it was kind of mysteriously held up by the administration. At a recent breakfast hosted by the Christian Science Monitor Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vogt to told reporters why this money was being held up.

[President Trump]

These are the programs that we have some of the gravest concerns with. Regarding the Education Department, Vogt argued the.

[Corey Turner]

Money was being used to fund programs that are, in his words, riddled with critical race theory.

[President Trump]

You have school improvement programs that are indoctrinating teachers to be cultural revolutionaries in the classroom.

[Corey Turner]

Now, Elsa, I spoke with Sasha Podelski. She's the director of advocacy for aasa. That's the School Superintendents Association. And she told me, you know, this funding goes to 13,000 districts and punishing all of them for the anecdotal mistakes of a handful is wrong. And for the most part, Podelski told me, this money is being used by schools to pay for teachers and teacher training and for programs that help kids learn math and the science of reading it even funds some AP classes, as well as support for English learners.

[Sasha Podelski]

It's never been done before. And this is not suddenly a future problem. This is a today problem, because district budgets were set with these funds in mind. And the sudden withholding of these funds by the Trump administration has thrown them into chaos.

[Corey Turner]

Petelski's group did a quick survey, too, of hundreds of local superintendents from all over the country.

[Sasha Podelski]

If this funding isn't released soon, three quarters of districts are going to have to eliminate programs that help children improve academically in core subjects like reading and math.

[Corey Turner]

And one more point here, Elsa. This is a problem that's going to affect red and blue districts. There was an analysis of the data by researchers at the liberal New America. They found that, on average, school districts represented by Republicans stand to lose 1.6 times as much funding per pupil as districts represented by Democrats.

[Ailsa Chang]

Oh, interesting. Well, still, I mean, there's like, what, nearly $5 billion that's being withheld right now for K through 12 schools. So do you know what that means for schools? Right.

[Corey Turner]

Yeah. I've been on the phone with superintendents, including Brian Huber. He runs the Page County Public Schools. It's a small, high poverty, rural district in the shadow of Virginia's Shenandoah Mountains. And he told me where he is, it is really hard to find and keep experienced teachers. So he often has to hire people with little or no experience. And then he relies on this federal money that's being withheld to train them.

[Brian Huber]

Not only are we bringing in people that are not experienced and not trained, we also need to have funds that can help them get better and, and also feel better at the work that they're doing. You know, no one wants to come to work and feel like a failure.

[Corey Turner]

You know, President Trump has talked a lot about how America's students are struggling at reading and math because public Schools and the U.S. department of Education, he says, have failed them. But Huber told me, low income rural schools have it really hard right now.

[Brian Huber]

If you want to talk about how we're not being successful in public education, then need to fund it. And I feel strongly about that.

[Ailsa Chang]

Okay, but can we talk about the department staff right now? Because with half of the staff gone, what kind of work is actually just going to stop? Because I'm sure there's no way they can do everything they once did with now just half of the people. Right?

[Corey Turner]

Yeah. I mean, I know many of the employees who remain are being asked to juggle multiple jobs right now, but I just want to focus on one thing, one of the most important things the ED department does at the K12 level, Elsa, keep in mind, before federal laws guaranteed kids with disabilities a right to an education, in many states, these children were turned away by public schools. That is not allowed anymore because the federal government got involved. Now, I mentioned the money earlier that it sends to schools to help pay for special education, but it also employs staff, including attorneys, who make sure students get the help they deserve. And these are some of the people who are being cut and including attorney Emily Moroli.

[Emily Moroli]

I am worried about students with disabilities and their families being left vulnerable and without a mechanism for making sure that their kids are receiving the services that they are legally entitled to and they are morally entitled to.

[Corey Turner]

I need to say, because Maroli won't officially lose her job until August 1, she was sharing her personal views there. Also, I asked the Education Department for comment on this, but they did not respond to my request.

[Ailsa Chang]

Okay, well, can we get to higher education as well? Because you laid out two big changes already. Can you tell us what's going on there?

[Corey Turner]

Yeah. So first there's the Trump administration using the Education Department really, as a weapon to go after elite universities over allegations of anti Semitism. We saw Columbia University just agree to pay an enormous fine over $220 million. The spotlight is also on Harvard. While that case is technically about policing anti Semitism on campus, you know, Trump has used this fight to cast himself as a kind of populist fighter against elite woke liberal universities. For Harvard, though, and really for colleges and universities all over the country, Elsa, I mean, this is an existential fight for their financial and intellectual independence. The other big higher ed story I need to mention here, it's less visible, but it's still a big deal, and that is that Republicans just passed a sweeping overhaul of the entire federal student loan system. You know, I think borrowers will actually like some of the changes in here. But it is hard to overstate just how much work it's going to be for the department to implement all these changes, especially considering they've got half the staff they had six months ago. You know, on a personal note, Elsa, my email right now is a swirling vortex of borrower questions.

[Ailsa Chang]

I bet.

[Corey Turner]

I think that's because so much is changing, you know, and it seems to be getting harder and harder for borrowers to just pick up the phone and get answers.

[Ailsa Chang]

Maddening. That is NPR education correspondent Cory Turner. Thank you so much, Corey.

[Corey Turner]

You're welcome.

[Ailsa Chang]

This episode was produced by Katherine Fink. It was edited by Nicole Cohen. And Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. It's Consider this from npr. I'm Ailsa Chang. Congress has approved a White House request to eliminate federal funding for public media. NPR remains committed to our mission of informing the public, increasing your understanding of the world, and enriching everyday life. But without federal funding, we are relying on your support now more than ever. Please give [e-mail] this message comes from ZipRecruiter.

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