Education in America is in trouble. Every year children, teens, college-bound young adults, and their families are left feeling more frustrated than optimistic about the state of education. Increased costs for families, outdated and ineffective learning models, lack of sufficient resources, unequal access, and safety concerns are at the top of every parent, child, and teacher’s mind.
Proven alternative and innovative solutions exist that can benefit everyone—from learners to educators and administrators. However, instead of focusing on the systemic barriers of long-held ideas that hold education and our children’s success back, the conversations have been focused on scrutinizing learning content and bringing adult-driven culture wars to the classroom. From book bans to bathrooms, when the public is involved in micromanaging the educational content and operations of our schools and universities, it’s no wonder teachers, administrators, and board members are struggling and leaving their jobs.
Every year children, teens, college-bound young adults, and their families are left feeling more frustrated than optimistic about the state of education.
To make matters more complicated, today the Trump Administration announced their action to begin dismantling the U.S. Department of Education[1]. The Department, while not always popular or understood, has served American families in its current form for the last four decades. It has been responsible for facilitating college access through federal loan programs, promoting and protecting equal access and anti-discrimination through the Office for Civil Rights, delivering quality learning opportunities for disadvantaged students, supporting special education programs for students with disabilities, and providing important data and research on the state of education in America.[2] Rather than infuse this congressionally directed department with fresh leadership and empower it to fulfill its mission “to serve America’s students”, the administration is moving to shut it down or severely cripple it.
Such a move could potentially set an entire generation back more than 50 years of progress and have severe consequences on families across the country. Pressure on states will increase to make up funding shortfalls for vital programs and it is presently unclear how Civil Rights and anti-discrimination laws will continue to be protected. Notably, according to a Department of Justice report, as of 2022 18.5 million students in America are attending segregated schools today.[3]
Additionally, access to colleges and universities is further in question. With increasing costs, defaults on loans skyrocketing, and enrollments decreasing due to lower birth rates over the last two decades, higher education is already facing an existential crisis. The long-term benefits of an undergraduate degree are well known. Higher lifetime earnings, better employment opportunities, career advancement, and personal development are the outcomes of higher education for individuals and society as a whole.[4] Society is better when it has access to a sustainable, funded, and liberal higher education system.
Education is a human right and the cornerstone of a thriving and free society in the 21st century.
Every American should rightfully demand their government play an important role in education that seeks to incentivize innovation, remove barriers, and increase access for all. Holistic education models that serve the whole person, openness to diversity and creativity through instruction and design, progressive learning modalities that inspire learner-driven success in a competitive and evolving world, and increasing equitable access to excellent K-12 schools, colleges, and universities will inspire hope and confidence in the future for our children. Without leadership and accountability at the federal level to promote these outcomes, American families and education will stand to suffer, especially among underfunded, disadvantaged, and segregated communities.
Education is a human right and the cornerstone of a thriving and free society in the 21st century. America must reclaim its commitment to education for every person by funding, promoting, and ensuring equitable access to it—not dismantling it.
[1] https://www.npr.org/2025/03/19/nx-s1-5333861/trump-executive-action-education-department
[2] https://www.ed.gov/about/ed-overview/an-overview-of-the-us-department-of-education–pg-1
[4] For curated insights on the U.S. Department of Education and its impact on education, https://www.perplexity.ai/search/what-is-the-role-of-the-federa-RhTq02VNQeemZdiQ.fC3qA
(This article was updated on March 20, 2025 to reflect the executive action formally taken.)
Matt Till 