WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Donald Trump’s interest in dismantling the Department of Education could come sooner rather than later. What does this mean?
What does the Department of Education do?
What we know:
The main role of the agency is financial, as it distributes billions annually. According to the Associated Press, the agency distributes billions in federal money to colleges and schools and manages the federal student loan portfolio.
Shutting down the agency could mean the redistribution of duties to a different agency. The department also handles the regulation of a number of services for students.
Trump has long signaled his intention to close the department, but fully eliminating it will require Congress to act, Linda McMahon said during confirmation hearings earlier this year. She was confirmed Monday.
McMahon shared that an executive order to shutter the department could come as soon as this week.
Who is Linda McMahon?
McMahon, a billionaire Trump ally and former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, and the nation’s newest education chief under the Trump administration.
She was a member of the Connecticut board of education for about a year in 2009, and is a longtime trustee at Sacred Heart University.
During her confirmation hearing, she distanced herself from Trump’s rhetoric. McMahon expressed the goal in her new role is to make the Education Department “operate more efficiently,” not defund programs.
Department of Education employees offered $25K buyout
What they’re saying:
Similar to the email that was sent out at the end of January to all federal employees offering a deferred retirement option, this offers employees of the Department of Education up to a $25,000 buyout to anyone that accepts by 11:59 p.m. It takes effect on March 31.
RELATED NEWS: Department of Education employees offered up to $25K buyout for resignations
When will Trump sign the executive order?
The Latest:
It’s not clear when Trump would sign the order, but White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote on X that it would not be Thursday.
The Source: Information from the Associated Press and FOX 5 reporting contributed to this report.
