Dismantling Education: Trump’s latest target
The Department of Education has come to a close, thanks to United States President Donald Trump and his nonsensical executive orders.
On March 12, the Trump administration announced it’s cutting nearly half of the staff at the DOE, according to George Martínez, a co-host for the National Public Radio podcast “Up First.” After the announcement, many employees received emails saying they were going to lose their jobs.
My first reaction was, “WHAT?” Without an education system, how will I be able to receive money from Free Application for Student Aid so I can stay in college? I know Trump doesn’t like education, which makes me wonder why he allowed Barron Trump to attend New York University. I have so many questions.
Apparently, Education Secretary Linda McMahon said those cuts were meant to reflect the department’s “commitment to efficiency, accountability and ensuring that resources are directed to where it matters most,” according to NPR’s Education Reporter Janaki Mehta.
Umm, Linda? You’re taking away the resources we need, so this “reflection” doesn’t make any sense.
The number of employees fired is outrageously high, according to Mehta. Hundreds from the Student Aid Office, nearly 250 from the Office of Civil Rights and over 100 from the Institute of Education Sciences were fired.
That’s another big blow because the institute had federal cuts a few weeks prior. I don’t want to be ageist or anything, but does Trump know what he’s doing? You could make a case for Joe Biden being old, but his cabinet was made up of people who had credentials and were politicians. Trump? He just found a group of Fox News workers who wanted to be best buddies with the president.
Back to the DOE ending, not only are people concerned about how fired workers will pay their bills, but the impact this will have for the American public who have children with special needs, according to a sound bite from Shara Smith, an attorney at the DOE’s Office for Civil Rights and president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 252, a union that represents department employees.
Additionally, there are some education department offices protected by law, like IES, according to Mehta. However, they received a termination email, so now that’s abolished. It’s up to Congress to decide whether this is clear or not.
“We’re going to be returning education very simply back to the states where it belongs,” Trump said in a sound bite from the March 21 “Up First” episode.
This was when Trump was in the process of shutting down the DOE, according to the episode. In the sound bite, Trump claimed that returning education to the states where it belongs is popular and common sense.
Okay, now I might scream into my pillow or throw my stress ball because I don’t know what to do. Oh wait, I forgot; I can keep writing, so back to informing the public.
The administration promised that certain federal education grants, including for low income and rural schools, would be preserved, according to Leila Fadel, a co-host for “Up First.” However, the workers who are in charge of the money will be gone.
Eliminating the DOE requires an act of Congress, according to Mehta. Another department that was in jeopardy is the National Center for Education Statistics. They are the central source of data about education in the United States. Without the department, formula grants made for schools will be really hard to get.
The money from the grants are flexible, according to Mehta. Once states and districts receive the money, they can pay school staff salaries, along with covering transportation costs and technology. There are only three employees left at the NCES who are working on the 2026-27 school year, according to Mehta. While it’s harder for schools to get the money, the workers said they were confident districts will receive it.
Unfortunately, the U.S. Census Bureau is shrinking, so distribution of Title I funding for schools is going to be complicated, according to Mehta.
For student loans, Trump said they would be moved to the Small Business Administration “immediately,” according to BBC News.
This raises another question: how will the Small Business Administration handle this? This man really hates education but loves to blab his mouth with gibberish. Whoever is the next president, all I ask is to bring our education system back, please.
The post Dismantling Education: Trump’s latest target first appeared on The Good 5¢ Cigar.
Latest Rhody Cigar
- This Week In Sports – 4/3Baseball Final (3/28): University of Massachusetts 6-3 University of Rhode Island Final (3/28): URI 13-1 UMass Final (3/29): URI 17-6 UMass Final (4/2): URI 11-9 Boston College (10 inn.) URI got the series win in its final regular season series against the Minutemen as Atlantic 10 Conference opponents. On Wednesday, URI survived a comeback bid... The post This Week In Sports – 4/3 first appeared on The Good 5¢ Cigar.
- Bjorn earns recognition for athletic accomplishments at URIThe University of Rhode Island Athletic Director of 18 years, Thorr Bjorn, is being honored by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics as one of the 28 Athletic Directors of the Year on June 10. Bjorn is one of four recipients in the Football Championship Subdivision, following URI football’s best season in the... The post Bjorn earns recognition for athletic accomplishments at URI first appeared on The Good 5¢ Cigar.
- Sailing club makes splash with national rankingThe University of Rhode Island club sailing team traveled to Charles River Basin, Mystic Lake and Harpswell Sound last weekend to compete in multiple regattas. Before attending the regattas, the team earned recognition for their spring season results so far, being ranked 14th in the nation by Sail1Design in open team racing for the first... The post Sailing club makes splash with national ranking first appeared on The Good 5¢ Cigar.
- Bulinski becomes breakout star for softballThird-year slugger Kylie Bulinski is in the midst of a career year for the University of Rhode Island softball team, which is no coincidence following a coaching change this past offseason. “The new coaching staff came in, and they took one look at me and were like, ‘Ok, she’s a power hitter,’” Bulinski said. “They... The post Bulinski becomes breakout star for softball first appeared on The Good 5¢ Cigar.
- Third-year swimmer receives award for community outreachThird-year swimmer Rylee Kelly learned that she had been selected by the Greater Providence YMCA as one of six 2025 Y Heroes after giving a tour of women’s athletics to a group from the YMCA in January. “It was super unexpected,” Kelly said. “Right after that, the CEO of the YMCA in Providence called me... The post Third-year swimmer receives award for community outreach first appeared on The Good 5¢ Cigar.
- Rowing kicks off spring season in NJThe University of Rhode Island women’s rowing team competed this weekend at the Doc Hosea Invitational in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, where the Rams collected multiple top-five finishes. In Rhode Island’s first competition of the spring season, the team finished second in the heats of the First Varsity 8+ division, which was enough to advance... The post Rowing kicks off spring season in NJ first appeared on The Good 5¢ Cigar.