Arizona State University
ASU President Speaks Out Against Education Department as Dissolution Talks Heat Up
By Staff Reporter |
Arizona State University (ASU) President Michael Crow has expressed a cautious stance regarding President Donald Trump’s intention to eliminate the Department of Education (ED). While Crow does not fully endorse Trump’s proposal, he advocates for a significant reform of the education system.
In a recent event at the University of Pennsylvania Club in New York City, Crow shared his concerns about the inefficacy of federal student loans. He highlighted that a substantial portion of taxpayer funding is squandered, with many loan recipients failing to graduate.
“The Department of Education is a mismatch of bank feeds that have been cobbled together over 50 years or more,” Crow stated. He pointed out that nearly $750 billion has been spent on Pell Grants in recent decades, yet over half of those recipients do not complete their college education.
According to Crow, these federal student loans are failing to achieve their intended goals. The expectation was to create a more educated citizenry that would contribute positively to the economy and society. Instead, most borrowers leave without degrees. “Most of the people that have loans supported by the government of the United States have no diplomas, no certificates, no degrees of any kind,” he remarked, calling for fresh approaches and innovations in educational funding and policy.
Trump’s campaign platform, known as “Agenda47,” explicitly aims to abolish the ED, shifting all educational responsibilities back to the states. He argued that the current structure has not yielded satisfactory educational results despite high federal expenditures. “We want them to run the education of our children because they’ll do a much better job of it,” Trump asserted.
The ED was established in 1980 under President Jimmy Carter, separating it from the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. In the fiscal year 2024, the department comprises about 4% of the federal budget, amounting to approximately $240 billion, with over $150 billion allocated to loans annually.
The ED employs around 4,400 individuals across 17 offices, covering various areas including Federal Student Aid and Civil Rights. Recently, South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds introduced a bill aimed at dissolving the ED through the Returning Education to Our States Act, which seeks to reallocate specific programs to different federal departments.
