During his candidacy, one of President-Elect Trump’s main promises for his upcoming Presidency was to disband the Department Of Education. Many people are conflicted on this issue. However, the real questions are: what is it that the department does, and will the upcoming President be able to abolish it?

Following the Department of Education Organization Act (public law 96-88) set in place by Congress under President Carter’s term, The Department of Education was established in May of 1980. The department’s duties include equal access for all students, funding special education programs and disadvantaged k-12 schools around the country, and providing financial aid for low-income students to attend education programs such as universities. Along with this, the department also seeks to increase the public’s involvement in federal education programs and prepare the students of America for global competition and possible future achievements. 

Those are just some of the many things the Department of Education does for the students of America; however, if it’s so great, why do President-Elect Trump and his followers want to get rid of it? The people against the department see it as unconstitutional and problematic, with the department holding an immense amount of power over the state. President-elect Trump and his followers see specific curriculums as inadequate and dangerous. Trump claimed, “We will cut federal funding for any school or program pushing Critical Race Theory, gender ideology, or other inappropriate racial, sexual, or political content onto our children” in an attempt to stop this controversial problem.”

Another issue stated is the amount of money put into the department. As of 2024, 4% of federal funding has gone into the education department; this is about 241.66 Billion dollars. The former President states, “We spend more per pupil than any other country in the world, and we’re at the bottom of the list.” If this is true, this poses a significant issue with our educational approach and the results that come out of it.

Although the upcoming President promises to abolish the Department of Education, will he be able to do it? Well, the answer is no, at least not by himself. President Trump would need the support of over half of the members of each chamber of Congress to eliminate the department. As of now, this is highly unlikely since even though most of each chamber is Republican, he still needs around 60 of the 100 senators’ approval. Since there are 47 Democrats, it would be very unexpected to be able to get seven extra votes to the already 53 on the Republican’s side. Furthermore, it is questionable whether all Republicans agree on this issue. The future of the Department of Education is very unclear, and all we can do now is watch its fate.