MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Linda McMahon's Senate confirmation hearing for Education Secretary today could be dramatic and unusual.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Yeah, that's because the Trump administration has made clear that it plans to dismantle the department she's been nominated to lead.
MARTIN: NPR's Jonaki Mehta has been following this story. Good morning, Jonaki.
JONAKI MEHTA, BYLINE: Good morning.
MARTIN: Before we get to what we can expect on the hill today, would you just start by telling us the latest at the Education Department?
MEHTA: Yeah. So on Monday, Elon Musk's unit, the Department of Government Efficiency - or DOGE - made severe cuts to the Education Department's independent research arm. I'm talking about the Institute of Education Sciences - or IES. DOGE eliminated most of the contracts the institute holds, nearly $9 million worth. And IES is responsible for collecting and sharing massive swaths of data that help shape the education system in this country, and they rely heavily on contractors to do it. Their work is on hold right now.
MARTIN: President Trump has made it clear that Job 1 for McMahon will be dismantling the department. Will anything be left if she steps in to lead it?
MEHTA: Yeah, well, I would say, first of all, the elimination of the department would require an act of Congress. But, yeah, if McMahon is confirmed, her first order of business will probably be to slim the department down further. In fact, on Tuesday, President Trump said he hopes she will work herself out of a job. By the way, this is an agency that has an annual budget of $79 billion, 4,200 employees. It's one of the smallest federal agencies, and the Education Department oversees some pretty consequential programs, like one that sends money to schools in low-income communities, another to protect the civil rights of students with disabilities. So hypothetically, McMahon would be charged with overseeing these kind of programs as long as Congress plans to keep protecting them.
MARTIN: So what exactly are we expecting at the confirmation hearing today?
MEHTA: Yeah, so I think one clue came from a House hearing on education last week. If that's any indication, the line of questioning to McMahon is probably going to be split along party lines. Here's a taste from that hearing.
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BOBBY SCOTT: The irony is not lost on me that we're here to discuss the state of American education while the current administration is actively discussing how to dismantle the main federal agency responsible for ensuring safe, quality education for all students.
MEHTA: That's Democratic representative Bobby Scott of Virginia. And here's Republican representative from Missouri, Bob Onder, arguing the Biden Education Department basically pushed liberal identity politics over learning.
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BOB ONDER: I believe abolishing the Department of Education is definitely a big part of the solution. How can we get back on the focus of educating kids rather than indoctrination and, you know, bloating our school bureaucracies?
MEHTA: I should say, Michel, the department doesn't actually play a role at all in shaping school curriculum. The law prevents it from doing just that.
MARTIN: Has McMahon shared anything about her own thoughts about where she stands on what should be done with the Department of Education?
MEHTA: Yeah, I'll start by saying McMahon doesn't have much of a background in education. She did serve on the Connecticut State Board of Education for a year. She's probably best known for leading WWE for decades, World Wrestling Entertainment. So she hasn't said anything in recent days about what she'd do with the department, but in December, she said on X she would work on, quote, "reforming the Department of Education." And we know she supports school choice, for example. We tried reaching her for an interview multiple times, and we haven't heard back. So we'll wait and see how she brings those skills to this department if she's confirmed.
MARTIN: That is NPR education reporter Jonaki Mehta. Jonaki, thank you.
MEHTA: Thank you, Michel. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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