ED Plans to Lay Off Nearly Half of Its Workforce
By Hugh T. Ferguson, NASFAA Managing Editor
Just one week after being sworn into office, Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced late on Tuesday that the Department of Education (ED) plans to lay off nearly 50% of its staff across all divisions as part of a “significant” reorganization aimed at improving efficiency and accountability.
The announcement comes as reports of a forthcoming executive order directing McMahon to take steps to dissolve the agency continue to percolate.
According to a press release, employees who are impacted by these reductions are slated to be placed on administrative leave on March 21.
ED said it would continue to deliver on “all statutory programs that fall under the agency’s purview,” which includes Pell Grants, student loans, and more.
“Today’s reduction in force reflects the Department of Education’s commitment to efficiency, accountability, and ensuring that resources are directed where they matter most: to students, parents, and teachers,” McMahon said.
Meanwhile, the department has temporarily closed its offices until Thursday, March 13.
NASFAA Interim President & CEO Beth Maglione noted that while NASFAA has publicly cited the need for reorganization and greater accountability within the Department of Education, "any reform must be strategic — done with a scalpel, not a chainsaw."
"Our primary concern is the lack of transparency about which functional areas are being cut, why specific departments have been selected for dismantling, and how the transition will be managed without disruption to students or the nation’s institutions of higher education," Maglione said in a statement. "Claiming that eliminating half the Department won’t affect its services — without any clear plan to redistribute the workload — is, at best, naive and, at worst, deliberately misleading. It also raises serious concerns about how billions of dollars in federal student aid will continue to be disbursed to students without interruption."
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), chairman of the Senate Health Education and Labor Committee, said that he personally spoke to McMahon about the planned reduction in force.
“I spoke to @EDSecMcMahon and she made it clear this will not have an impact on @usedgov ability to carry out its statutory obligations,” Cassidy said in a post on X. “This action is aimed at fulfilling the admin’s goal of addressing redundancy and inefficiency in the federal government.”
Democrats were quick to denounce the layoff plans Tuesday evening.
Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the Trump administration is “taking a wrecking ball to the Department of Education and robbing our students and teachers of the resources and support they need.”
“Donald Trump and Linda McMahon know they can’t abolish the Department of Education on their own but they understand that if you gut it to its very core and fire all the people who run programs that help students, families, and teachers, you might end up with a similar, ruinous result.”
This is a developing story. Stay tuned to Today’s News for more details as they become available.
Publication Date: 3/12/2025
William M | 3/12/2025 12:7:38 PM
Hopefully the regional trainers are not being impacted. While they are often not allowed to travel to conferences due to a lack of travel funding, they have been available to the schools over the phone and via email to answer questions and to explain what we are reading.
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