A strong education system is fundamental to opportunity, economic mobility, and the long-term success of our communities. The Trump Administration’s efforts to weaken or dismantle the U.S. Department of Education (USED) raise both legal and policy concerns. Only an act of Congress can dissolve the Department; until then, the President has an obligation to keep it staffed and fully functioning. Furthermore, even if Congress were to choose to eliminate USED, much of its work would have to be offloaded to other departments or agencies, undermining efforts to improve efficiency and reduce spending.
Title I grants, for example, must still be distributed according to federal law.[1] These Congressionally-mandated grants specifically support schools serving large numbers of students from low-income backgrounds; they cannot be halted by any administration, even if the Department is dissolved. Over many years, USED staff have developed expertise in data collection and grant administration, ensuring that complex Title I funding formulas are accurately implemented and that schools receive critically important resources.[2] Eliminating that institutional expertise — only to have to rebuild it elsewhere — would be an inefficient use of both time and taxpayer money.
In 2022, about 7 percent of the revenues for New Jersey’s school districts came from federal sources.[3] Districts with higher concentrations of poverty, however, are more reliant on federal aid; in Camden, for example, nearly 15 percent of revenues came from federal sources. Slashing this funding would have devastating effects on the school districts serving our most economically disadvantaged children.
New Jersey’s colleges also rely heavily on USED and the federal funding it distributes. In 2024, New Jersey’s postsecondary students received nearly $1 billion in federal grants and an additional $1.6 billion in federal direct student loans.[4] Until recently, the Department has also played a significant role in protecting students’ civil rights on college campuses. Weakening or eliminating the Department would put the rights of students, faculty, and staff in jeopardy at New Jersey’s universities and colleges.
Dismantling USED would have far-reaching and long-term disastrous effects both nationwide and for communities across New Jersey. As the state grapples with a structural budget deficit, lawmakers must prioritize defending the critical programs, policies, and federal spending that support New Jersey students and schools.
End Notes
[1] https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R47702
[2] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2019/2019016.pdf
[3] Author’s calculation from data published by the US Census: https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2022/econ/school-finances/secondary-education-finance.html
[4]
https://www.ed.gov/about/ed-overview/annual-performance-reports/budget/us-department-of-education-budget-history
