The incoming Donald Trump administration is signaling a dramatic overhaul of the nation’s education system, starting with the nomination of Linda McMahon as Secretary of Education and the potential dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education. Trump’s bold agenda comes as the education system faces a reckoning over decades of increasingly dismal outcomes, particularly in core areas like reading, writing, and mathematics. The statistics are grim: only 19% of high school seniors graduate with functional literacy, a sobering indictment of an institution that has seen ballooning budgets but little to show for it.
Since the Department of Education’s creation under President Jimmy Carter, federal education spending has skyrocketed by 136%, yet student performance has failed to keep pace. The number of school-aged children has risen only slightly—up about 9% since the late 1970s—suggesting that the problem isn’t a lack of resources but a glaring mismanagement of priorities. Back in 1977, the U.S. had roughly 46.5 million school-aged children. By 2023, that number had climbed to 49.6 million, but the outcomes hardly justify the spending explosion.
Complicating matters is the demographic shift within the U.S. education system. As of 2023, more than a quarter of children in U.S. households came from immigrant families, doubling the share recorded in 1990. This trend has significantly impacted the classroom, with 5.3 million students identified as English learners by 2021. That’s roughly one in nine students grappling with learning the language while trying to keep up with other subjects. The challenges posed by integrating such a large population of non-native speakers into an already struggling system are immense, but policymakers have largely sidestepped the issue in favor of feel-good platitudes.
The numbers paint a stark picture of a system burdened by inefficiency and distracted by priorities far removed from ensuring students graduate with basic skills. While proponents of the status quo champion increasing diversity and inclusivity in classrooms, the practical realities suggest a need for reform that puts academic achievement back at the forefront. For Trump and his incoming team, this means stripping down bloated bureaucracies like the Department of Education, which seem better at funneling money than delivering results.
With Linda McMahon at the helm, the Trump administration has an opportunity to reshape education policy in a way that addresses these deep-seated issues. By refocusing on literacy and math proficiency and tackling the unique challenges posed by a growing number of English learners, the administration could begin reversing decades of decline. Whether it’s through empowering local school boards, reallocating federal funds, or slashing ineffective programs, one thing is clear: the current trajectory of America’s education system is unsustainable, and a reset is long overdue.
