Through UMass Education Students Eyes: How Trump Could Affect the Education System

Trump’s pLans

Trump recently made claims that he will eradicate the Department of Education upon taking office. His impending inauguration has highlighted this looming threat, haunting educators nationwide. While America is not ranked number one in education, it isn’t among the lowest. PISA scores, a test that is a huge indicator of education rankings for parliament, has declined since 2018 but the U.S. remained highly ranked compared to many other countries.

Strictly speaking, PISA is not the best reference to determine the “best” education system globally. Harry Feder, the executive director of the National Center of Fair & Open Testing, has spoken about the multifaceted reasons why the U.S. has scored on the middle to lower end of 38 other countries. He also speaks on how this testing research can be taken out of context by policymakers. It is important to note that we ranked 6th in reading, 10th in science, and 22nd in math in the PISA for 2022. Second of all, education curricula are primarily up to the state’s resolve so “restoring education to the states” is not an issue that the American people have despite what Donald Trump would like citizens to believe. 

So What does the Department of Education do? 

The U.S. Department of Education (DOE), according to their website, “is the agency of the federal government that establishes policy for, administers and coordinates most federal assistance to education,” but it does far more than that simple description.

The DOE funds key acts like Title I which provides financial aid to elementary and secondary school districts with low-income families. It houses the FSA which determines FAFSA, loans, grants, and work-studies for college students across the country. The Department of Education also upholds The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) which is a law that gives free public education for children with disabilities; creating a more accessible educational institution. The IDEA Act directly supports the use of IEPs and 504 Plans, two of the most common programs that support students with disabilities in the education system. According to the DOE, the IDEA Act “provides early intervention, special education, and related services to more than 8 million (as of school year 2022-23) eligible infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities”. All of this legislation is at stake under Trump’s plan to dismantle the Department of Education.   

How Do University of Massachusetts Education Students feel about it?

As a special education major at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, I hadn’t heard of any of my professors speaking about Trump’s plans for the DOE, which surprised me. The lack of conversation, in general, about this part of his campaign encouraged me to reach out to my fellow education peers via survey and get their thoughts on the Trump administration’s plans. Here are some of their responses:

• How do you feel about Trump’s Plan for the Department of Education?

“I thought it was a joke at first. I never thought in my lifetime a president would want to take down the Department of Education without a plan to make a new federally funded department of education. It does not make any logical sense to me. The federal government should be funding more education, not taking away the whole department,” said Aubrey Coyne, a junior community education and social change major.

“I think it will lead to a sharp decrease in accessible education, especially in poorer states. As well as an end to programs like FAFSA and in-state tuition which could lead to public state colleges closing doors,” added Reiley Terry, a sophomore education major.

• What impacts do you think this will have on students overall?

“If it’s up to the states to decide education policies, students in the predominantly [republican] states will be affected the most. I assume there will be more bans on books and curriculums. The church and public school may no longer be separated. FASFA could end and students may not even be able to get IEPs,” explained Coyne.

“I think this will have a serious negative impact on students overall. If Trump decides to cut billions of dollars to the Department of Education, it will do more harm than good. For students who have IEPs and have disabilities, they need to be accommodated properly, and there needs to be sufficient enough money for school systems to support children’s needs,” said Nina Lussier, a communication major with an elementary education minor on the 4+1 track.

• Are you worried about your job or teachers’ jobs based on curriculums?

“I am worried about my job. There is nothing more in life I want to be than a teacher and help my students in life and academia. It worries me if I don’t have sufficient enough resources for my students to flourish and succeed to their maximum capacity. You can only work with what you are given, and if that amount you’re given is not enough, you won’t be able to do as much as you intend,” Lussier commented.

Logan Soares, a senior education and psychology double major explained, “I’m worried about teachers’ jobs who speak about topics that are going to be banned in certain states (which is already happening), like curriculum about race, gender, sexuality, etc”.

• Do you think Trump will abolish the Education Department?

“I don’t think he will have the votes in Congress to do so.” – Reiley Terry (Education ‘27) 

“I think Trump will try to abolish the Education Department but I am hopeful that there will be some way to stop it from happening.” – Logan Soares (Education and Psychology ‘25)

THe future of Education?

The bottom line is that we don’t know what the future of education will look like under the Trump administration, but most education majors at UMass hold hope. Education is at the forefront of our country in many ways. Future generations rely on the up-and-coming educators of America to advocate for their rights to affordable and quality education for all. I know, in my heart, that the aspiring educators of the University of Massachusetts will succeed. 

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