How Trump downsizing the Education Department could affect Connecticut schools

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

62% : The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is another major federal aid program for education, specifically for supporting students with disabilities through special education programming and other services.
60% : So, Trump can't eliminate the Department of Education through executive order, and Title 1 and IDEA are protected by statute.
56% : " Typically, the federal and state government work hand in hand to support schools, said Democratic state Rep. Laurie Sweet in an interview.
55% : Some speculate the student loan portfolio could be moved to the Treasury Department, which Project 2025, the sweeping blueprint for a second Trump administration, also says. To administer state assessments, the U.S. DOE granted Connecticut's education department a total of $5 million in 2024.
54% : With Connecticut's own Linda McMahon confirmed to lead the department last week, state education leaders and advocates were already bracing for her to carry out Trump's agenda in slashing a department they say is critical to public education.
53% : "I mean, for this year, we're okay, but you know, July is approaching quickly," said Fran Rabinowitz, executive director of the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents.
49% : What can happen? With or without the department, funding for key programs could shrink through the congressional budget process, which was already a concern for state education advocates.
49% : An order to end the department or downsize it could also leave some of its other duties, like managing student loan debt and standardized testing in limbo.
40% : No, Trump alone cannot abolish the department.
35% : The plan, announced Tuesday, has long been expected since Trump was elected and follows buyout offers and the termination of probationary employees.
35% : "Nobody wants this, nobody in America wants the destruction of public education," said Sen. Chris Murphy, one of the several U.S. Senate Democrats that spoke out against Trump's plan to downsize or dismantle the department in a press conference recently.
24% : The layoffs are part of a dramatic downsizing directed by Trump as he moves to reduce the footprint of the federal government.

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