Trump’s Dept. of Education Sees Early Wins Ahead of Linda McMahon Confirmation Hearing

President Donald Trump’s Department of Education (DOE) has seen a burst of early victories since Jan. 20 and ahead of Education Secretary nominee Linda McMahon’s confirmation hearing on Thursday morning.

Ultimately, the 45th and 47th president wants to see the DOE abolished and more power sent back to states and communities, and he has quipped that he wants McMahon “to put herself out of a job.” But for the time being, the DOE has feverishly tackled diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, gender ideology, antisemitism, and wasteful spending that been woven into the fabric of the American education system.

Many of the changes have been prompted by Trump’s sweeping executive orders, which have prompted whole-of-government overhauls to rid departments and agencies of divisive left-wing ideologies not rooted in reality.

Trump’s Education Department has:

• Cut Wasteful Spending – DOE has terminated nearly $1 billion in contracts, including 29 DEI training grants totaling $101 million. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has also found and eliminated $15 million in DEI grants for college students studying to become teachers at California State University, Virginia Commonwealth University, and the University of St. Thomas, which were created under the Biden administration.

• Worked to Eliminate DEI – The DOE has eliminated its Diversity & Inclusion Council, withdrawn the department’s Equity Action Plan, and identified for removal of more than 200 DEI-related webpages from DOE’s website. The DOE has also ended “Biden’s Book Ban Hoax.”

• Embraced Biological Reality in Schools and on Sports Teams – President Trump signed two executive orders to crack down on gender ideology in the federal government: “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” and “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.” Since then, the DOE has reportedly told employees to scrap programs that fail to affirm the reality of biological sex.” The department has launched five Title IX violation investigations into universities and athletic associations that are allegedly allowing males to play on female sports teams (see here and here.) The department is also investigating the Denver Public Schools District in Colorado for replacing a high school girls’ restroom with an “all-gender” restroom.

RELATED: NCAA Officially Bans Trans Athletes from Women’s Sports One Day After Trump EO

• Launched Antisemitism Investigations into Five Universities – The DOE opened investigations into five universities — Columbia University; Portland State University; Northwestern University; University of California, Berkeley; and University of Minnesota, Twin Cities – which were each accused of allowing antisemitic harassment against their students. The department’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) said it will prioritize the backlog of antisemitism cases that accrued under the Biden administration.

• Supported School Choice – On Jan. 29, Trump signed an executive order directing the DOE to prioritize school choice programs through discretionary grants and stating that it is the policy of the administration to “support parents in choosing and directing the upbringing and education of their children.” Subsequently, the DOE announced the release of $33 million in grant funding for Charter Management Organizations stalled under the Biden administration, which are designed to expand high0quality educational opportunities for students.  

READ MORE: The Nation’s Report Card for U.S. Students Shows Continued Learning Losses Since Pandemic

Trump has called McMahon, who previously served as the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, a “fierce advocate for Parents’ Rights.” McMahon is also the co-founder and former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).

Trump has charged McMahon with spearheading the effort to send education “BACK TO THE STATES.”

“For the past four years, as the Chair of the Board at the America First Policy Institute (AFPI), Linda has been a fierce advocate for Parents’ Rights, working hard at both AFPI and America First Works (AFW) to achieve Universal School Choice in 12 States, giving children the opportunity to receive an excellent Education, regardless of zip code or income,” he said when he announced her nomination.

“As Secretary of Education, Linda will fight tirelessly to expand ‘Choice’ to every State in America, and empower parents to make the best Education decisions for their families,” he added.

McMahon also served on the Connecticut Board of Education, as well as a Member of the Board of Trustees at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut. She additionally served as co-chair for the Trump-Vance transition team.

“Linda will use her decades of Leadership experience, and deep understanding of both Education and Business, to empower the next Generation of American Students and Workers, and make America Number One in Education in the World. We will send Education BACK TO THE STATES, and Linda will spearhead that effort,” he said.

The DOE told Breitbart News the department plans to keep its momentum going with McMahon at its helm, should she be confirmed. The DOE specifically wants to work on empowering states and parents, expanding schools choice, “prioritizing core skills ahead of divisive ideologies, and holding institutions of higher education accountable.”

Most importantly, the department said it wants to reorient the agency “toward prioritizing meaningful learning ahead of divisive ideology in our schools.”

McMahon’s confirmation hearing with the Senate HELP Committee will take place at 10 a.m. ET on Thursday, Feb. 13.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.