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U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon doubled down on closing the Department of Education (ED) as planned to demonstrate to Congress that the federal agency she leads is no longer necessary.
“Signing these interagency agreements means, in fact, that the Department of Education is contracting with these agencies to perform the functions that they’ve been given,” McMahon told Digital.
“The first big block of work was transferred over to the Department of Labor.”
Throughout his 2024 presidential campaign, Donald Trump promised to eliminate the ED, later signing an executive order directing his administration to begin dismantling the agency.
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Education Secretary Linda McMahon outside the White House in Washington, D.C., July 15, 2025. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
As part of that effort, the Department of Labor (DOL) is taking on a major role in the day-to-day administration of adult education, family literacy and career and technical education (CTE) programs under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and the Perkins Act.
While Labor manages operational duties, the Department of Education retains statutory responsibilities and oversight while shifting services to states and grant recipients.
“It started first with CTE — Career and Technical Education — then K–12 and finally higher education as well,” McMahon said.
McMahon explained that she wants to show lawmakers that federal support for students won’t falter without a standalone Cabinet department.
“I’ve asked Congress with this proof of concept in these interagency agreements: ‘Let me prove to you that it works,'” she said.
“Ultimately, Congress has to vote if we do close the Department of Education, and if I, in fact, am able to fire myself. Hopefully, they will vote [for it], because I believe the outcome will be better for students, and that is the goal. That is certainly the president’s goal.”
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A Department of Education sign is displayed outside its federal student aid office May 18, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
The agency took another major step by partnering with the Department of the Treasury, which agreed to take over key operations related to federal student loans and collections on defaulted debt.
The student loan partnership with Treasury and the workforce initiative with DOL are part of a broader series of interagency agreements. According to Department of Education officials, the goal is to demonstrate a “proof of concept” to Congress that essential federal education functions and funding flows can be successfully reallocated across executive branch agencies without disruption.
“I call it my proof of concept to show Congress that it works, that the money still gets to schools and to students where they need it,” McMahon told Digital.
“Some of the programs in the Department of Education were being duplicated in other agencies or handled better elsewhere,” McMahon added. “So, let’s be efficient. Let’s make sure the money gets where it needs to go, let’s measure that by student outcomes and let’s hold teachers and administrators accountable for what they’re doing.”
Andrew Gillen, a higher education policy research fellow at the Cato Institute, told Digital that shifting major core duties like student loans and formula grants marks a substantial change from previous interagency agreements, which historically focused on minor administrative support.
McMahon previously argued during the government shutdown that the ED acts primarily as a pass-through entity for federal money, contending that its day-to-day functions are nonessential.
“Congress appropriates the funds. The funds come through the Department of Education, and some of that funding still goes to other agencies to get to students and schools,” McMahon told Digital.
“Primarily, the money was passed through the Department of Education to then get to the states and local authorities for education.”
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President Donald Trump holds up an executive order to start dismantling the Department of Education after signing it in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., March 20, 2025. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)
ED announced earlier this year that the agency moved out of the Lyndon B. Johnson Department of Education building so the Department of Energy could move in by August. The move is what the officials call “a prudent step to save hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars and further reduce the federal education bureaucracy.”
The Trump administration is also seeking to reduce the department’s footprint by returning more power to the states.
The ED launched a new process allowing states to seek greater flexibility in using federal education funds and reducing administrative burdens. Iowa became the first state to participate in the effort.
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The Department of Education sent states a letter in July 2025 encouraging them to apply for the waiver, which would give state education officials more discretion over federal dollars and reduce compliance costs.
