Trump wants to shut down US Department of Education. How could that affect CA schools?

President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to shut down the U.S. Department of Education.

Trump held an event at the White House to sign the order, the Associated Press reported, directing U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon “to take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure (of) the Department of Education and return education authority to the States, while continuing to ensure the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs and benefits on which Americans rely.”

Since the U.S. Education Department was created by Congress, however, legal experts say the federal agency can only be dismantled with congressional approval.

What would the agency’s elimination mean for thousands of California school districts that rely on support from its nearly $242 billion federal budget and programs?

The Trump administration previously cut nearly half the 4,133 Department of Education workers with plans to schedule additional layoffs.

In response, about 20 state attorneys general, including California Attorney General Rob Bonta, sued the president to stop mass firings.

Here’s how education dollars are allocated in California and what the impact on schools across the state might be:

What does the U.S. Department of Education do?

Congress created the U.S. Department of Education in 1980 during the administration of President Jimmy Carter to “strengthen the Federal commitment to assuring access to equal educational opportunity for every individual,” according to the cabinet-level agency’s mission statement.

The federal agency was intended to supplement and complement state and local efforts to improve the quality and usefulness of education, as well as work with the private sector, nonprofit research institutions and others.

It serves students from kindergarten through grad school.

How does the U.S. Department of Education work?

The department distributes funds to each state through dozens of types of grants — some of them entitlements and others awarded through a competitive application process.

The grants are aimed at improving education for specific populations, such as students with disabilities, homeless students or migrants.

It also manages the federal Direct Student Loan Program and Pell Grants, both for higher education.

Can President Trump abolish US Education Department with executive order?

While Trump has said he would do so, legal scholars have said the cabinet-level agency created by Congress can only be eliminated by Congress.

Project 2025 calls for the president to work with Congress on education policy and to decide what to do with the department and its funding.

How much federal education money comes to California?

Federal funding accounted for about 6% of funding for California schools serving students in kindergarten through 12th grade in the 2024-25 academic year, the Legislative Analyst’s Office reported, amounting to $8 billion.

California was expected to receive $2,750 per student in kindergarten through 12th grade in 2025, Newsweek reported.

Federal dollars particularly support education for disadvantaged students and students with disabilities.

Have California school districts already been impacted?

Federal staff cuts at the U.S. Department of Education have already impacted school services, Elk Grove Unified School District Board President Michael Vargas previously told The Sacramento Bee.

This includes the district’s Unified Family Communication Department, which assists with budget and program decisions.

Elk Grove serves more than 62,000 students of which 53% are socioeconomically disadvantaged. Several district schools also rely on Title I funding to support underserved students.

The Title 1-A program, which authorizes aid to disadvantaged students, is the “primary source of federal aid to elementary and secondary education,” according to a Congressional Research Report.

The California Department of Education indicates that Title I, Part A funds are “used to support effective, evidence-based educational strategies that close the achievement gap.”

“If the Education Department were to be eliminated, the most likely scenario is that Title I money would flow through another federal agency,” education website Hechinger Report said in a Nov. 22 article.

Congress, however, would need to approve any cuts.

“Not having that support from the federal level is a big deal, right? That’s a big pain point for us,” Vargas said.

Sacramento City Unified School District Board President Jasjit Singh told The Bee that he’s concerned about students’ access to loans and grants for college in a system “that is already difficult to navigate.”

Also at risk could be $3.8 million in Title II funding to the state for California’s Literacy Initiative, which seeks to implement “evidence-based practices aimed at achieving reading by third grade and beyond.”

Federal government cuts impacted $4.6 million in INSPIRE grants intended for San Luis Obispo bilingual and special education teachers at Cal Poly amid the Trump administration’s sweeping edict to revoke funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs at schools.

Threats to federal funding led the University of California system to announce a systemwide hiring freeze and prompted the elimination of diversity statements in hiring processes.

This story was originally published March 20, 2025 at 1:56 PM.