US Education Department cuts nearly half of staff
Illustrative photo: Fired employees will be given time to return and collect personal belongings (Getty Images)
US Education Secretary Linda McMahon said nearly 50% of the agency's staff has been cut. This is the first step toward the department's closure, a promise made by US President Donald Trump, according to CNN.
"The layoffs are 'the first step of eliminating what I think is bureaucratic bloat,'" she said in a comment to Fox News, acknowledging that closing the department would require action from Congress.
Although McMahon recognized that many people lost their jobs, she stated that the department retained the necessary personnel to ensure that no program would be "fall through the cracks," particularly grants and Congressional allocations.
In addition, the US Department of Education's headquarters in Washington was closed, and CNN reported that this was related to the layoffs. This step was described as "standard corporate practice" to avoid the simultaneous presence of both laid-off employees and those who remained. McMahon stated that laid-off employees would be given time to return and collect their personal belongings.
The secretary also defended Trump against criticism, stating that he “directed to me clearly to shut down the Department of Education.”
“Clearly, we’re not taking away education … He’s taken the bureaucracy out of education so more flows to the state,” she argued. “Better education is closest to the kids with parents, with local superintendents, with local school boards. I think we’ll see our scores go up with our students when we can educate them with parental input as well,” she said.
