There is no one-size-fits-all approach to education, but it’s handled best when power is given closest to the states, said U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon.
The Department of Education is clearly doing something wrong if reading and math scores continue to decline, McMahon said during a fireside chat hosted by the Cato Institute, an independent public policy research organization. One of her solutions, aside from dismantling the Education Department, is to “get back to basics.”
She referred to the “Mississippi miracle,” a success story of the state’s leap from the second-worst state for fourth-grade reading to 21st in 2022 using the science of reading, as reported by the Associated Press. McMahon said giving states the innovative freedom to prioritize the fundamentals will prove beneficial to students.
Her main point made throughout the discussion was that resources and responsibilities will be reallocated if the Trump administration successfully shuts down the Education Department. For instance, Title IX violations could be handled through the Department of Justice.
“We have an Office of Civil Rights in Education, but they have many more in the Department of Justice,” she said. “That’s a natural place for that to reside.”
Furthermore, she said that since cutting the Education Department’s workforce by half, she’s noticed an increase in collaboration and productivity upon “cutting the fat.”
“We’ve moved people out of district offices and into the D.C. offices, and we have a lot more collaboration, and I think the productivity is even better,” she said.
Addressing concerns
School choice also came up during the chat, a topic gaining attention since the Trump Administration proposed a budget reconciliation bill on Monday that would set aside nearly $5 billion a year for private school vouchers. She said Trump argues there should be as many types of schooling as possible, and parents should have the option to choose between them.
“He doesn’t believe any child should be trapped in a failing school,” she said. “He’s a strong supporter of charter schools, homeschooling and religious education schools.”
McMahon also said parents need not worry about protections for special education students. She says protections will be maintained by those who are closest to those students—parents and teachers. In terms of funding, she says she and President Trump have made it clear that Individuals with Disabilities Education Act funding won’t be going away.
“That funding is going to continue through IDEA,” she said. “It may flow through a different agency, it may flow a different way, but that funding is going to continue, and the President’s been very specific about that.”
Closing the Education Department
McMahon’s mission to “put herself out of a job,” as directed by President Trump, isn’t over. She shared with the audience a joke that President Trump told her about what would happen if the Education Department shuts down for good.
“He said, ‘Here’s what we’re going to do. When we actually close down the Department, you and I are going to stand on the steps, and we’re going to have a padlock that we’re going to put on it and invite the press.'”
“You might find that surprising for President Trump to have that kind of vision,” she added.
As the discussion came to a close, she reminded those concerned about what the Department of Education doesn’t do, and why K12 education wouldn’t be harmed like people worry it will.
“We don’t set curriculum,” she said. “We don’t buy books. We don’t hire teachers in states. We don’t do any of those things. We’re really more of a pass-through of funding at this particular point, which I’ve mentioned before, that can pass through other agencies. We want to get that money directly to the states as quickly as possible. So let’s take the bureaucracy out of Washington that costs money, and have more money to be able to get to the child.”
You can watch the recorded fireside chat here.
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