Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) shared her grim forecast of the future of U.S. classrooms if the Department of Government Efficiency trims the Education Department budget.
Since President Donald Trump named Tesla CEO Elon Musk and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy the volunteer heads of the DOGE, the two have teased cuts to education. Ramaswamy campaigned on abolishing the department, but he has since bowed out of the commission.
“You take education: You’re looking at denying people school lunches, you are taking the opportunity for a college education if you cut Pell Grants, you cut student financial aid,” DeLauro said Monday on MSNBC’s Ana Cabrera Reports. “There are a whole range of what these services do for the American public. That’s the word that has to get out. When you cut education, when you cut Title I, 72,000 teachers nationwide are gone. Your kid may be in a classroom that doesn’t have a teacher. Special education for developmentally challenged kids, that will be cut. What happens to those kids?”
Trump has committed to sending education funding back to the states rather than having it mostly funded at the federal level. According to the president, there are “great states that do so well, have no debt” when it comes to education.
Last week, Democratic lawmakers attempted to enter the Education Department building in Washington during a protest but were barred. They included Reps. Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Maxwell Frost (D-FL), who became testy with a security guard when he refused to let them in.
The current teacher shortage has prompted the rash filling of vacancies. As a result, nearly 10% of practicing teachers are designated as unqualified. Another 45% passed the basic teaching qualification test.
However, the top complaint among teachers is centered on the students themselves. An EdWeek Research Center survey found that 72% of educators reported their students were behaving worse than they were before the coronavirus pandemic. This same survey reported that less than one-fifth of teachers are satisfied with their jobs.
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The acting education secretary is Denise L. Carter. Trump’s nominee for the role, former WWE executive and Small Business Administrator Linda McMahon, has yet to have a confirmation hearing before the Senate.
While DOGE staff members are not government officials, it is their job to create “a lean team of small-government crusaders” to work closely with the White House Office of Management and Budget.