Every student’s right to access education fairly and fully is crucial to a functioning multi-racial democracy. The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has long been a pillar of our society, ensuring fair, safe, and equitable education for all students by enforcing important civil rights laws, providing critical resources, and safeguarding valuable protections.
However, recent proposals from President Trump aim to dismantle or weaken ED’s authority. The Trump Administration has already fired nearly half of the department’s staff, removing civil servants who advance important work related to advancing equal educational opportunities, including drastically cutting personnel in the Office for Civil Rights (OCR). The loss of these resources and protections could result in even fewer educational opportunities for Black students, including those with disabilities, and exacerbate achievement gaps.
Although the Trump administration threatens significant and dangerous changes, federal civil rights laws that protect against discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, and disability remain in place. This includes Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Even with potential cuts to ED’s powers, these legal protections have not gone away; however, changes to ED could affect federal enforcement.
Without ED’s OCR, which is responsible for investigating discrimination complaints and ensuring compliance, tens of thousands of complaints of discrimination in schools will go unheard and unresolved. In 2024 alone, OCR received nearly 23,000 complaints — a record high. However, the Trump administration’s proposals would limit OCR’s ability to enforce protections, meaning parents and students may soon have less access to this essential resource.
These rollbacks would disproportionately affect Black students and other students of color, girls, LGBTQ+ students, students with disabilities, and students who are English learners. In states such as Texas, where there are local efforts to scale back enforcement, this could lead to even deeper inequities in classrooms and across school districts.
Students and parents still have the right to advocate for themselves; document any incidents of discrimination, harassment, or inequitable treatment; and file complaints as needed. Filing complaints with OCR is free, can be done online or by phone (800-877-8339); and does not require a lawyer. In fact, these actions may be more important than ever.
Local advocacy groups, legal resource groups, and other organizations may be able to fill gaps as federal protections become more limited. Students and families can work with advocacy groups or their state and local governments when OCR does not adequately address their claims of discrimination.
Community members should implore school districts and states education agencies to continue to collect and publicly report data currently collected under the mandatory Civil Rights Data Collection.
Parents and students can advocate for state and local school boards to pass affirmative and proactive policies to strengthen local civil rights enforcement. Educators, parents, students, and other stakeholders should also fight for the passage of state policies to evaluate and eradicate racial disparities in education and ensure there is a clear and robust process to address instances of harassment and discrimination in schools.
Elect pro-civil rights local school board members and hold them accountable to protect all students’ civil rights in education. Speak truth to power through protest, engage with your local news outlets, and provide public testimony to demand that all students have access to equal educational opportunities free from discrimination.
The Department of Education administers billions of dollars in federal funding to elementary and secondary schools. During the 2024 fiscal year, the Department of Education disbursed and managed:
ED also provides millions of dollars of discretionary grants to districts doing important work to remove barriers to educational opportunity for Black students.
Cuts to these funds could be detrimental to all schools, but the impacts would be disproportionately felt at schools that serve disadvantaged and low-income students and students with disabilities, limiting their ability to provide a quality education and close achievement gaps. Even if the federal government continues to fund these programs, dismantling ED or cutting its staff will make the disbursement of this money inefficient and ineffective.
Beyond efforts to dismantle ED, this administration has also threatened to withhold federal funds for elementary and secondary school districts that do not comply with the administration’s misguided and flawed interpretations of federal civil rights laws.
Work with local school districts to better understand the types of programs that federal dollars support at your local schools.
Share your personal story about the impact this funding has on your life and your family. Your personal testimony can help build popular sentiment and encourage local, state, and federal elected officials to maintain funding.
ED helps make college financially possible for millions of students by administering over $100 billion in higher education funding. This includes thousands of dollars in Pell Grants for qualified low-income students, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) program, and over $1 trillion dollars of federal student loans.
ED also oversees a robust system of rules and regulations to protect students and borrowers from predatory colleges, including low-quality, for-profit programs that leave students with high debt and little opportunity for increased earnings.
Dismantling ED could result in disastrous interruptions and losses to these important funding and regulatory programs in higher education. Even if the federal government continues to provide federal student aid through a different agency, students and borrowers would still face consequences from the loss of institutional knowledge held by ED staffers who have overseen these programs for decades.
ED’s regulatory process allows for students and borrowers to comment on changes to higher education rules and regulations, including changes to important provisions related to loan forgiveness programs, institutional accountability metrics, and federal student aid administration.
Submit formal comments on proposed changes and work with advocacy groups to gather specific stories to include in public comments.
Share information and encourage your school community to submit comments and demonstrate public support for federal protections for students and borrowers.
The “Dear Colleague” letter misstates the law and threatens to cut funding to pre-K-12 schools, colleges, and universities that invest in steps to level the playing field for students, faculty, and staff. We separate fact from fiction.
Project 2025 proposes to close the ED and end federal enforcement of civil rights, deregulate and eliminate federal funding for educational programs, and restrict access to inclusive, accurate, and quality instruction.
LDF’s Equal Protection Initiative (EPI) works to protect and advance efforts to remove barriers to opportunity for Black people in the economy, our educational systems, and other areas.
Today, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a preliminary injunction blocking the enforcement of a certification requirement from the U.S. Department of
Today, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on behalf of the National Academy
Today, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) challenging the U.S.
Today, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) and 44 other civil rights organizations and education advocacy groups sent letters to elementary and secondary State Education Agencies (SEAs)
Today, the U.S. Department of Education sent letters to K-12 state education agencies threatening to withhold federal funding from public schools unless they verify that they
Yesterday, President Trump issued an Executive Order to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education (ED), instructing Secretary McMahon to facilitate the closure of the federal agency.
