Walking down the many school hallways that I have in my career – whether it’s been a rural elementary school with few resources, a charter school fighting to connect with the community it serves, or a high school filled with the air of ambition and dreams of the future – I carry with me more than my years of experience as a classroom teacher and former principal. I carry this haunting question: What systems and institutions are helping or destroying what is happening inside this building?
One of the most misunderstood systems in our nation’s education story is the U.S. Department of Education. Lately, I’ve noticed that it has become the unfortunate target of sharp debate, a political talking point, and social media chaos. Some are cheering on the movement for it to be dismantled entirely, while others defend the role it has played for decades of being a force for moving our nation toward educational equity for millions of children.
Now is a great moment to pause and talk plainly, citizen to citizen, about this institution to understand it better. What is the Department of Education? What power does it actually hold? And what might happen if we keep it, change it, or get rid of it altogether?
What the Department of Education Actually Does
Let’s begin by establishing this truth: The U.S. Department of Education (ED) does not run your local school district. It does not hire and fire teachers and staff, create your annual school year calendar, or even decide which textbooks students read and learn from. That job is largely the job of states and local school boards.
So what does the ED do?
Rewinding to its inception many years ago, the Department of Education was created in 1979 with a simple mission: to promote student achievement and equal access to education. That is accomplished through various means, including:
- The distribution of federal funding: It administers billions of dollars in federal aid, primarily for Title I (low-income schools), special education (IDEA), and higher education grants and loans (such as FAFSA and Pell Grants).
- Enforcing and upholding civil rights laws: It ensures schools follow federal anti-discrimination laws related to race, sex, disability, and more through the Office for Civil Rights.
- Conducting research and collecting data: It funds and publishes critical research on what works (and doesn’t) in education and keeps track of trends in achievement, equity, and access. Within the educational field, these are known as “best practices”.
- It helps guide and set national priorities: Through programs like Race to the Top or guidance around ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act), the department sets incentives and outlines broad goals.
Basically, the ED is more of a researching body, a watchdog of sorts, and a funding entity, rather than a top-down enforcer.
What It Isn’t: Clearing Up the Myths
There are some concerning lines that I have heard echoed over and over when I speak with concerned parents or community leaders:
“The Department of Education controls everything!”
“They’re indoctrinating our kids from Washington!”
“We need to give power back to the states!”
And listen—I understand the impulse. I believe deeply in local leadership, teacher voice, and community-driven change. But I also believe in facts. And here are a few that matter:
- The ED’s budget is only about 6–8% of total K–12 education funding. The vast majority (over 90%) of school funding comes from state and local sources.
- The ED does not create curriculum. That’s the domain of local districts and state boards of education. It doesn’t choose what books your child reads.
- It doesn’t mandate testing beyond what Congress has passed into law. The vast majority of standardized testing is decided on at the state and local levels.
- It cannot force any local district to adopt controversial programs. What it can do is tie federal funding to certain requirements.
So no, the ED is not spying on your child’s classroom, nor is it dictating what is in your child’s teacher’s lesson plan. What it is doing – on its best day – is trying to make sure that if you’re a student with a learning disability in Kansas, or a first-gen college student in Michigan, you still have a shot at accessing a quality education.
Why the Calls to Dismantle?
If you’ve had your eyes open for even a moment recently, then you are aware that there is a growing movement to abolish the Department of Education entirely. Some argue that it’s bloated, overreaching, and ineffective.
There is this growing chorus of opponents who claim that dismantling it would “return power to the people”. But what people are we talking about? And what happens when there’s no one at the federal level making sure marginalized students don’t get left behind?
We’ve seen this story before.
Before the Department of Education existed, Black students in the South were often relegated to attend schools with crumbling walls and no books. Students with disabilities were routinely denied entry to classrooms with no alternative. Girls were steered away from math and science. It was the federal government, not local school boards, that stepped in to say: This is unacceptable.
Without a national guardrail, we risk creating 50 different education systems—some thriving, quite a few failing, and most deeply unequal.
Reform vs. Removal: What Should We Do Instead?
One thing I want to be clear about is that I am not making a case that the Department of Education is perfect or not in need of reform. Far from it.
I’ve seen federal mandates create compliance chaos and confusion at the school level. I’ve watched initiatives like No Child Left Behind create test-obsessed climates that stressed out teachers and reduced learning to numbers. As a former classroom teacher and school principal, I’ve seen the imbalanced emphasis on math and literacy outcomes for the sake of children scoring high in this area leave a whole generation of students lacking in science, critical thinking, and informed citizens when it comes to civics and history.
But the answer to imperfect systems isn’t to destroy them. It’s to work together to build them better.
If we want to change the Department of Education, here are some ideas worth pursuing:
- A sharp refocus on equity: I refuse to believe that equity is a bad word. Let’s strengthen its ability to enforce civil rights protections for all students, not just in theory, but in action.
- Cut through the red tape: Simplify funding processes so schools and families can access support without jumping through bureaucratic hoops.
- Elevate local innovation: Create more flexible funding streams that allow for community-led programs and culturally responsive teaching. What will work in Massachusetts looks different from what is most useful in the classroom in Texas. And that’s a beautiful thing!
- Listen to educators: Build advisory boards with real teachers and principals at the table—not just policy analysts. Invite practicing educators into the room where the decisions are being made at all levels.
Reform means shaping a department that works with schools, not above them.
Why This Matters Now—More Than Ever
We are at a turning point in American education.
Between pandemic recovery, political polarization, and rising inequality, schools are being asked to do more with less, and yet they take the blame when things don’t go right. The last thing we need is to strip away the few levers of national accountability we have.
Think about it:
- If the Department of Education disappears, who ensures that students with disabilities are protected equally across all 50 states?
- Who tracks racial disparities in school discipline, graduation rates, or college access?
- Who provides critical funding for rural districts that can’t raise money through property taxes?
If we lose the Department of Education, we lose a unifying thread—flawed though it may be—that says education is a national priority. Not just a local responsibility. Not just a state concern. A national value. Dare I say, a national treasure.
A Personal Note: Why I Care
I’m not writing this from an ivory tower. I have been a school principal, a classroom teacher, and now I spend my days providing quality professional development for educators across the country. I’ve been the classroom teacher trying to stretch a limited budget. I’ve led in a school where our kids needed more; more support, more access, more belief. And I’ve watched as national policies either helped or hindered those efforts.
But at the end of the day, I still believe in education. I still believe in the role of thoughtful leadership at the national level. And I’m not talking about control, but partnership. Partnership that could help us truly create schools that are safe, fair, and excellent for every single child.
This conversation isn’t about partisanship. It’s about a promise. The promise we’ve made to our children, to their futures, and to the kind of nation we want to be. The kind of people we are.
Thought-Provoking Questions to Reflect On
Let’s not stop at the headlines or the soundbites. Let’s not stop at the clickbait temptation to yell at each other online. Let’s dig deeper.
Here are a few questions I invite you to sit with, whether you’re an educator, a policymaker, a parent, or just someone who cares:
- What does it say about our national values if we eliminate the one federal department focused solely on education?
- In what ways can the Department of Education evolve to better serve, not control, schools across the country?
- Who stands to benefit if the Department is dismantled? Who stands to lose?
- How do we ensure that marginalized students are seen, heard, and protected, regardless of where they live?
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, we do not need less commitment to education at the national level. We need more. We need courageous, collaborative leadership that recognizes both the diversity of our communities and the shared responsibility we have to each and every child.
Dismantling the Department of Education might feel like a win for small government. But for students living in the margins, it would be a loss too heavy to bear.
Let’s not tear down the system without asking: What are we building in its place?
Let’s build better. Together.
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Vimbo Watson, M.Ed. is a speaker, professional development provider, education expert, former school principal, and national speaker on school culture, burnout recovery, and transformational leadership. She is also an active Navy spouse, recently named the AFI 2025 Washington Navy Yard Spouse of the Year. She helps educators and organizations build better systems where people don’t just survive—they thrive.
