If you’ve been scrolling through your feed lately, you’ve probably seen the headlines. People are panicking, or cheering, depending on which side of the fence they’re on. But the big question remains: Is Trump actually shutting down the Department of Education?
Honestly, the answer is a bit of a "yes, but it’s complicated" situation.
Since taking office in early 2025, President Trump hasn’t just talked about it; he’s signed executive orders and started moving the furniture. On March 20, 2025, he signed an order specifically telling Education Secretary Linda McMahon to start the process of closing the department. Since then, it’s been a whirlwind of layoffs, lawsuits, and a massive reshuffling of where your tax dollars go.
But here’s the thing—you can't just slap a "Closed" sign on a federal building and walk away. There are laws, Congress, and about $1.6 trillion in student loans that make this a massive logistical nightmare.
The "Final Mission" and the Great Reshuffle
Secretary McMahon has called this the "final mission" of the agency. Kinda ominous, right?
Basically, the administration’s strategy isn't to just flip a switch. Instead, they’re hollowed out the department from the inside. They’ve already cut thousands of jobs. In March 2025 alone, about 1,300 workers were laid off. By the time we hit January 2026, the department is a skeleton of what it used to be.
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But the programs themselves aren't just vanishing into thin air. They’re being farmed out.
- The Department of Labor (DOL) is taking over a huge chunk of K-12 programs and postsecondary grants.
- The Department of the Interior is now looking after Indian education.
- Health and Human Services (HHS) is being prepped to take over other student-parent support roles.
This is what’s known as "deconstruction." If you can’t legally kill the department without 60 votes in the Senate (which Trump doesn't have), you just move all its responsibilities elsewhere until the building is empty.
Why the $1.6 Trillion Student Loan Problem Matters
You’ve probably got a friend—or maybe it's you—who is stressed about student loans. The Department of Education is essentially the biggest bank in the country. It manages a massive portfolio of debt.
If the department shuts down, those loans don't just disappear. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. The administration has made it clear that "the Department of Education is not a bank" and they want to move those functions to an entity that is actually equipped to handle them.
Right now, student aid (Pell Grants and loans) is still being disbursed. But the management is shifting. Starting this week—January 20, 2026—staff from the Office of Postsecondary Education are being "detailed" to the Department of Labor. This means the people who handle your grants might have a different logo on their paycheck soon.
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The Legal War: "See You In Court"
Naturally, this hasn't gone down without a fight. Organizations like the NAACP and the American Federation of Teachers have been filing lawsuits faster than you can keep track of.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta is currently leading a coalition of states to block these transfers. Their argument is pretty simple: Congress created the Department of Education in 1979 via the Department of Education Organization Act. Since Congress created it, only Congress can kill it.
The courts have been a see-saw. One week a judge halts the layoffs; the next week, the Supreme Court stays that ruling. It’s a mess.
What Most People Get Wrong
A lot of people think that if the department closes, schools will just stop getting money. That’s not quite how it works.
The money for things like Title I (for low-income schools) and IDEA (for students with disabilities) is written into federal law. Trump can’t just stop the money without Congress changing the law. What he is doing is changing who sends the check and what strings are attached.
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The goal is to turn that money into "block grants." Essentially, the feds give a lump sum to a state like Florida or Texas and say, "You figure it out."
Is It Gone for Good?
As of January 2026, the department still technically exists. It has a budget request for 2026 (about $66.7 billion), though that’s a $12 billion cut from the year before.
There is a bill in Congress right now, H.R. 899, introduced by Representative Thomas Massie. It’s a one-sentence bill that aims to terminate the department by December 31, 2026. Whether that passes depends entirely on whether the administration can peel off enough moderate Democrats or if they decide to nuking the filibuster—both of which are huge "ifs."
What This Means for You: Actionable Steps
If you’re a parent, a student, or a teacher, you shouldn’t just sit around and wait for the news to break.
- Check your Student Aid portal regularly. With staff being moved to the Department of Labor and systems being integrated into "Grant Solutions," the risk of administrative errors is high. Log in to studentaid.gov and make sure your contact info is current.
- Watch your State Legislature. If the federal government successfully moves to block grants, your local state capital becomes the most important place in your world. That’s where the decisions on how to spend Title I and special education money will be made.
- Monitor the Department of Labor announcements. Since the DOL is now the "new" Department of Education for many programs, their press releases are where you'll find info on K-12 oversight and career technical training.
- Stay updated on Title IX changes. The administration is aggressively rolling back DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) programs and changing how civil rights violations are handled on campuses. If you're involved in university administration or student advocacy, these rules are changing month-to-month.
The Department of Education is currently in a state of "controlled demolition." It’s still standing, but the walls are being taken down one by one. Whether the whole building falls by the end of 2026 is a battle that’s currently being fought in the halls of Congress and the chambers of the Supreme Court.