Trump celebrates returning education to states in national address, but feds still dominate

In his speech to the nation on Dec. 17, President Donald Trump devoted part of it to celebrating increased state involvement in education and decreased federal oversight, for which he credited his administration.

“We have broken the grip of sinister woke radicals in our schools,” he said, “and control over those schools is back now in the hands of our great and loving states, where education belongs.”

In November, Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced six interagency agreements, shifting management of major programs to other federal agencies. This included sending the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education to the U.S. Department of Labor.

While we appreciate President Trump’s continued support for returning control of education to the states, examining the details of what has been done to date demonstrates how the feds continue to dominate.

In December 2015, President Barack Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which greatly expanded federal control over education. For more than a decade, USPIE has advocated closing the Department of Education and ending federal mandates altogether.

Moving programs from the Department of Education to the Department of Labor does not restore state authority; it entrenches federal control under a different label. Shuffling federal education control is dangerous, deceptive.

Ms. McMahon’s plan dilutes education policy within unrelated agencies and makes federal influence harder to track. It is the epitome of rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. Meanwhile, the Department of Education retains statutory responsibilities and oversight. This is not decentralization; it is bureaucratic reshuffling dressed up as reform.

Rather than repeal the ESSA, which would be needed to truly return control, states must file ‘mommy may I’ waivers to the feds to manage something as simple as determining how and when students are assessed.

Mr. Moore’s HR 2691 bill to close the Department of Education is a step in the right direction. It ends all programs in the Department of Education and provides block grant funding to states based on federal income taxes paid by residents. We propose strengthening the bill with two amendments. First, all programs within the Department of Education as of January 20, 2025, should be ended. Second, federal taxpayers with children in private or home education should receive a child tax credit per child equal to their state’s per-pupil allocation, and taxes from families with children in government schools should flow directly into state education funds.

President Trump should throw his support behind HR 2691, a genuine legislative effort to get the feds out of education and return control to the states, local communities, and most importantly, parents.

What American children deserve is a classical liberal arts education that cultivates truth, goodness and beauty and produces independent thinkers rather than compliant workers. For centuries, classical education formed great leaders, inventors, scientists, writers, philosophers, theologians, physicians, lawyers, artists and musicians. It nurtured the God‑given gifts of each child, preparing them not merely for careers but also for life. That — not the failed federal experiments that have dominated since the Department of Education’s inception in 1979 — is the tradition we should reclaim.

To hear more from USPIE’s Founder and President, Sheri Few, tune in to the latest episode of USPIE’s podcast, “Unmasking Government Schools with Sheri Few,” on Tuesday, Dec. 30, where Few is joined by special guest Israel Wayne, director of Family Renewal and author of several powerful books, including “Education: Does God Have an Opinion?” He’s a nationally recognized conference speaker and homeschool advocate, helping families reclaim their children’s hearts and minds for Christ. Listen to “Unmasking Government Schools with Sheri Few” on YouTube, Facebook, Spotify and X.

USPIE’s powerful documentary, “Truth & Lies in American Education,” addresses some of the most glaring issues in the American education system and helps parents experience a paradigm shift in how they think about education and the role of their local schools. The film follows Few’s daughter-in-law, April, as she seeks to learn more about the system she was planning on exposing to her own children and learns the shocking truth. “Truth & Lies in American Education” is available for streaming on SalemNOW, as well available on DVD