Department of Education

Read more about the actions and functions of the U.S. Department of Education

Explainer

The U.S. Department of Education, in Washington, D.C., pictured on February 21, 2021.
The U.S. Department of Education, Explained
There's a lot of talk—again—about eliminating the U.S. Department of Education. Here's what it does and how it works.
View Explainer
A hat with the word 'VETO' on it sits on the Resolute Desk as President Donald Trump speaks after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, in Washington.
A hat with the word "VETO" on it sits on the Resolute Desk as President Donald Trump speaks after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, in Washington. The U.S. Department of Education under Trump has begun a review of civil rights guidance documents issued during the Obama and Biden administrations.
Alex Brandon/AP
Federal What a Trump Admin. Review of Civil Rights Guidance May Mean for Schools
The Education and Justice departments say seven guidance documents "are no longer enforceable."
Mark Walsh, November 6, 2026
•
6 min read
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., gives encouragement to volunteers at a phone bank at a hotel on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., gives encouragement to volunteers at a phone bank at a hotel on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. Democrats are on track to be back in charge in the lower chamber, giving them leverage to push their own K-12 agenda and resist President Donald Trump's.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Federal Democrats Will Control Congress. What Educators Can Expect
Democrats won key races across the country, with implications for K-12 policymaking in Washington.
Alyson Klein, November 4, 2026
•
6 min read
Education Secretary Linda McMahon prepares for an interview at the Republican convention Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, in Dallas.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon prepares for an interview at the Republican convention Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, in Dallas. The American Federation of Teachers says in a new lawsuit that the U.S. Department of Education is delaying loan forgiveness decisions for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, for which teachers qualify.
Alex Brandon/AP
Federal Teachers' Union Sues Trump Administration Over Student Loan Forgiveness
The American Federation of Teachers and nine student loan borrowers allege the agency is delaying Public Service Loan Forgiveness decisions.
Cris Tolomia, Quartz, November 2, 2026
•
2 min read
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., the top Democrat in the Republican-majority House, is joined by Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., chair of the House Democratic Caucus, as they criticize President Donald Trump and his policies while talking to reporters about the approaching midterm election, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries speaks at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 17, 2026. He's joined by Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., who chairs the House Democratic Caucus. If Democrats gain a majority of either chamber of Congress after next month's elections, they'll be able to hold oversight hearings on and launch investigations into the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Federal What a Democratic Congress Could Mean for Trump's K-12 Agenda
They may try to reverse—or at least investigate—the Trump admin.'s efforts to dismantle the Ed. Dept.
Alyson Klein, October 8, 2026
•
9 min read
Director of the United States Office of Management and Budget Russell Vought walks down a staircase on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 16, 2026.
Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, walks down a staircase on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 16, 2026. The OMB withheld millions of dollars from the U.S. Department of Education's research arm for months, raising the possibility it wouldn't spend the money on education research and data collection in time for its Sept. 30, 2026, expiration.
Allison Robbert/AP
Education Funding Ed. Dept. Meets Research Spending Deadline—But Bigger Funding Challenges Loom
The Institute of Education Sciences finished spending more than $170 million set to expire Sept. 30.
Mark Lieberman, September 30, 2026
•
3 min read
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., center, confers with Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, talk following a Senate Democratic Caucus meeting, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026.
Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, (right, speaking with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer) secured a commitment from Education Secretary Linda McMahon to supply additional funding for Native Hawaiian Education Program grantees when the U.S. Department of Education hadn't launched a competition for new grants. The Trump administration practice of abruptly canceling existing competitive education grants has slowed, but the Education Department is using procedures that result in fewer new grants and less stability for funding recipients.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Education Funding Trump's Ed. Dept. Is Still Disrupting Grants—Just More Quietly Than Before
The agency is deploying subtler procedures that result in fewer new grants and less stability for recipients.
Mark Lieberman, September 30, 2026
•
11 min read
Russell Vought, acting director, Office of Management and Budget, right, and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin listen during a cabinet meeting, Friday, July 31, 2026, at Camp David, the presidential retreat, near Thurmont, Md., Friday, July 31, 2026.
Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management, listens during a Cabinet meeting on July 31, 2026, at Camp David, the presidential retreat, near Thurmont, Md. The White House has announced an $810 million package of "pocket rescissions," saying it won't spend the congressionally appropriated funds before the end of the 2026 federal fiscal year, which ends Wednesday. The rescissions include nearly $100 million for U.S. Department of Education program.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP 
Education Funding Trump, Bucking Congress Yet Again, Cancels $100 Million for Education
A "pocket rescission" hits programs for migratory farmworkers and college-level language instruction.
Mark Lieberman, September 28, 2026
•
7 min read
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 13: Local elementary schools participate in the annual Brooklyn Gay Pride Parade, celebrating its 30th year, June 13, 2026 in the Park Slope neighborhood of the borough of Brooklyn, New York City.
Local elementary schools participate in the annual Brooklyn Gay Pride Parade, celebrating its 30th year on June 13, 2026, in the Park Slope neighborhood of the borough of Brooklyn, New York City. The Trump administration has officially rescinded a Biden-era regulation that extended Title IX's prohibition on sex discrimination to cover discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images
Federal Ed. Dept. Officially Kills Biden Rule That Added LGBTQ+ Protections to Title IX
The Education Department reinstates 2020 Title IX regulations effectively in place since early 2025.
Mark Walsh, September 28, 2026
•
4 min read
Students navigate the hallway at a Chicago Public Schools high school in 2024.
Students walk in the hallway at a Chicago high school in 2024. Congress' investigative arm finds in a new report that the U.S. Department of Education isn't keeping a close eye on how states are tracking chronic absenteeism, in part due to its suspension this year of its comprehensive examinations of how states are implementing the Every Student Succeeds Act, the nation's main K-12 law.
E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
Every Student Succeeds Act Ed. Dept. Isn't Ensuring States Get Reliable Chronic Absence Data, Watchdog Says
The Ed. Dept. suspended some of its state oversight earlier this year, according to the GAO.
Alyson Klein, September 23, 2026
•
4 min read
WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 17: The U.S. Department of Justice Building on August 17, 2026 in Washington, DC.
The U.S. Department of Justice Building on Aug. 17, 2026 in Washington. The Justice Department has teamed up with the U.S. Department of Education to fight school and state policies concerning transgender students it deems objectionable.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Law & Courts Trump Admin. Turns to Student Privacy Laws in Gender Identity Fights With Schools
The feds are increasingly citing student privacy laws in gender-identity battles with school districts.
Mark Walsh, September 17, 2026
•
8 min read
TahSoGhay Collah, right, teaches a third-grade English learners class at the 700-student intermediate school that serves grades 3 through 5, in Worthington, Minn., on Oct. 22, 2024.
TahSoGhay Collah, right, teaches a 3rd grade English learners class in Worthington, Minn., on Oct. 22, 2024. Researchers seeking federal grant funding to train more teachers to work with English learners requested letters of support from state leaders to submit competitive applications this year.
Jessie Wardarski/AP
Education Funding What 'Returning Ed. to the States' Looks Like as the Ed. Dept. Awards Grants
State leaders face requests for letters of endorsement from grant applicants under new priorities.
Ileana Najarro & Maya Riser-Kositsky, September 11, 2026
•
7 min read
Letters on the Department of Education building are missing after removal of America 250 banners, which included those of Booker T. Washington, Catharine Beecher and Charlie Kirk, on March 18, 2026, in Washington.
Letters on the Department of Education building in Washington are missing in this March 18, 2026 photo. The Trump administration continues to push for the agency's closure while also touting its help for states.
Allison Robbert/AP
Federal Trump Admin. Touts Ed. Dept.'s Help for States as It Tries to Shut It Down
The Trump administration pushes the Education Department's closure, while touting its help for states.
Mark Lieberman, September 9, 2026
•
6 min read
MINNEAPOLIS, MN, January 22, 2026: Students at Washburn High School fill the stairwell during passing time in Minneapolis, MN.
Students fill the stairwell in between classes at a high school in Minneapolis on Jan. 22, 2026. The U.S. Department of Education has released data designed to highlight disparities in schools, but it did so quietly and without issuing a report highlighting top-line findings.
Caroline Yang for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Ed. Dept. Releases Data on Schools' Racial Disparities Months Late
The data is supposed to highlight racial, ethnic, and disability-based disparities in schools.
Stephen Sawchuk & Matthew Stone, September 2, 2026
•
6 min read
Russell Vought, Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) testifies on the OMB budget during a House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on June 4, 2025.
Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, testifies during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 4, 2025. OMB has been slow to release congressionally appropriated funding to the Institute of Education Sciences, the U.S. Department of Education's research arm. IES now has just weeks to spend $180 million before it expires.
SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images
Education Funding Ed. Dept. Risks Letting $180 Million for Research Expire as Deadline Looms
Spending by the agency's research arm has lagged most significantly compared with previous years.
Mark Lieberman, September 2, 2026
•
6 min read