By Princess Yeboah
Assistant Editor
Photo by Andy Feliciotti from Unsplash
On March 20th, 2025 in office President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order on the US Department of Education that will completely shut down federal funding millions of students rely on. According to President Trump his act of signing the executive order is essentially “returning education, very simply, back to the states where it belongs”. In addition to its closure, 50% of DOE staff were placed on administrative leave effective Friday, March 21st. The DOE is the agency of the federal government that establishes policy to administers and coordinating most federal assistance to education. It also assists the President in executing his education policies for the nation and in implementing laws enacted by Congress. At MWCC, where many students rely on aid from programs such as Pell grants and loans, both faculty and students feel upset and fearful about this major change.
The main mission of the DOE is to ensure that both college and primary school students have their financial needs met to succeed in their studies. During the coronavirus pandemic, public school enrollment first fell from 50.8 million students in fall 2019 to 49.4 million students in fall 2020 and 2021 before rising to 49.6 million students in 2022. In addition, thirty-eight percent of first-time, full-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students overall were awarded loan aid in 2020–21.
People at risk are those with financial instability, learning English, disabled, racial and ethnic minority students more vulnerable to fewer educational opportunities as the benefits of the DOE are being stripped from them, such as much needed programs to feed, educate and protect students. The key programs that will be heavily affected are: The Elementary and Secondary Education Act, directing money to schools with a high concentration of students living in poverty and providing support with reading specialists and class sizes, the Individuals with Disabilities Act providing $15 billion to support students with disabilities, the Civil Rights Department of Justice, protecting students from discrimination based on race and gender, along with Pell Grants and federal student loans that college students receive support from to finance their education.
With this executive order set in place, there is no doubt that worry will plague the minds of students and educators alike.
Kara Roche, English Professor and Coordinator of Honors Program shares her voice on these pressing matters. “The idea that a [federal organization] cares about all its students getting access to an education has been one of the crowning achievements of this country. Removing access and loans takes away from equality and equity.” Roche went on to say how she used to teach in the secondary ed public school system
Roche is not alone in feeling this way, as many other educators in the country are also frustrated about the sudden removal of DOE. National Public Radio news shared the voice of educators who expressed a mix of emotions in response to DOE shutting down. Randi Weingarten, who is the head of the American Federation of Teachers, denounced the cuts of DOE educators saying it is “an attack on opportunity that will gut the agency and its ability to support students, throwing federal education programs into chaos across the country.”
Two students at MWCC give comments on how they feel about the current situation of worldwide education. Suliana Torres, Gateway Student, has heard a lot from her current classes about how the education system runs. “In my opinion, I just feel like it’s something that should really be focused on…I don’t agree with everything [DOE] that’s going on.
Kenzie Gallagher expresses fear on the statement President Trump made as he signed the order into place. Gallagher works hard to make sure that she can keep up with school and personal costs. “I’m just scared that it’s going to [affect me] next year and scholarship opportunities that I could have had.”
Even though the state of DOE for many looks uncertain, there is one thing that should not be downsized – the Mount Community’s gratitude for the positive impact of DOE and their concern over what these changes could mean for their own educational goals.
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