LOS ANGELES (CNS) – Hours after President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday calling for the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education, Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said that undermining current funding levels could prove to be “catastrophic” to the quality of education for students.
On Thursday, Trump advanced a campaign promise to eliminate the education department, which he has characterized as wasteful and full of “woke” and “liberal” ideology. Though, dismantling the department will not be possible without action from Congress.
In a video statement, Carvalho, who heads the nation’s second largest school district, noted that federal investment of education across the country is reasonably small — about 4% of the total federal budget, annually, or about $270 billion for 15,000 school districts.
LAUSD receives about $1.2 billion of federal investment with about $470 million supporting the largest program, Title 1. These funds provide services to the “poorest of the poor” in the district that has 85% of its population living at or below the poverty level, according to Carvalho.
Dollars also support children diagnosed with autism, ADHD, disabilities, or who require special assistance, as well as students experiencing homelessness.
“These federal programs provide stability, support and accelerated learning for thousands of kids in our district, and millions of kids across America,” Carvalho said.
He warned that dismantling the DOE will impact students, teachers, food and education programs.
“Lastly, for those who argue that maybe there’s a better way of earmarking dollars directly to states through block grants and empower states with local decisions, I have news for you: That’s already the reality,” Carvalho said. “This begs the question, `Why?’ and `Why now?’ and `What is the impact long-term that will directly impact our kids?”
According to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, the department will continue to manage federal student loans and Pell grants, as well as other critical duties such as enforcement of civil rights.
Trump’s Administration has already reduced the agency’s workforce as part of a larger plan to downsize federal operations, led by the Department of Government Efficiency.
The president’s action also prompted swift response from Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and other L.A. regional elected officials.
“Today’s illegal act by the Trump Administration will have disastrous consequences for our schools,” Schiff said in a statement. “It will mean less resources for special education, for teacher training and for individualized attention to the learning needs of each child. That these cuts are made to fund a tax cut for large corporations makes the sacrifice of our schools even more unbearable.”
Rep. Nanette Barragán, who represents California’s 44th Congressional District, called Trump’s order a “reckless decision” and an attack on students.
“Donald Trump, Elon Musk and Republicans are ready to destroy our public education system for the purpose of slipping a few extra dollars in the pockets of their billionaire donors. They will strip away essential programs and resources, like Pell grants, Title I funding and anti-discrimination protections, that are critical to student success,” Barragán said in a statement.
Rep. Robert Garcia, who represents California’s 42nd Congressional District, added that they would not rest and will fight to stop these actions and “rebuild America’s education system.”
Roxanne Hoge, chairwoman of the Republican Party of Los Angeles County, defended Trump’s order. She attended a recent Parents Not Partisans educational summit, in which they discussed California’s educational outcomes.
“The bloated federal bureaucracy plus California’s incredibly powerful public sector teachers unions have already caused irreparable harm to students,” Hoge said in a statement. “If educating California’s young people actually mattered more than funneling money to that one special interest, Governor Gavin Newsom and his cronies wouldn’t have shut down our schools for almost two years.”
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