Senate Confirms Linda McMahon as Education Secretary Amid Department Downsizing Plans

“I am deeply grateful to President Trump for his trust in me to serve in his Cabinet as Secretary of Education,” said McMahon. “I am prepared to lead the Department in this transformational time and embrace the challenge to improve the education system for the more than 100 million children and college students who deserve better.”

Trump made his intentions for the department clear last month when he told reporters he wanted McMahon to “put herself out of a job.” The statement aligns with his campaign promises to shutter the agency entirely, though such action would ultimately require congressional approval.

“President Trump pledged to make American education the best in the world, return education to the states where it belongs, and free American students from the education bureaucracy through school choice. I intend to make good on that promise,” said McMahon.

Meanwhile, the Education Department has already offered employees buyouts of up to $25,000, with a Monday deadline for acceptance. This move comes as tech billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has begun internal restructuring, recently claiming to have terminated $881 million in contracts deemed wasteful.

“We’re deeply concerned that her boss, Donald Trump, wants her to take a wrecking ball to the Department of Education and this nation’s public schools,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten in response to McMahon’s confirmation. “We want to work with her on strengthening public schools and ramping up high school career and technical education and workforce development efforts across the nation. We ask that she respect the hardworking and amazing educators of this country who are helping young people every day.”

Critics warn that dismantling the department could have far-reaching consequences for public education nationwide, particularly for schools that depend on federal funding to supplement state and local resources.

“Today marks another dark day in America—not just for our government but for our kids,” said NAACP President Derrick Johnson. “McMahon’s confirmation brings us one step closer to losing our Department of Education—the agency that not only funds public schools, but advocates for our teachers and enforces essential civil rights laws.”

Jeanne Allen from the Center for Education Reform took a different view, urging bold action: “It’s now time for a concentrated effort to stop the incessant federal interference that stands in the way of delivering great education and empower state and local leaders to foster more opportunities to give schools and educators true flexibility to innovate,” she said.  “Linda has demonstrated that she is a dynamic leader with a track record of building and scaling successful enterprises, and I have no doubt that her entrepreneurial and innovative spirit will bring a fresh perspective to education policy.”

Allen suggested that Trump should “announce during his address to Congress tomorrow that he is ordering an Educational State of Emergency” and direct McMahon to begin dismantling programs that have “contributed to the current educational crisis.”

As the administration moves forward with its plans, McMahon will also be responsible for implementing several education-related executive orders, including one that threatens to cut funding for K-12 schools found to be “indoctrinating” students through teachings about race and gender.

Education policy experts note that while completely eliminating the department would require legislative action, the administration has significant latitude to reorganize and reduce its operations in the meantime.

“Linda McMahon is now responsible for fulfilling the Department of Education’s mission as a civil rights agency, protecting students from discrimination, and advancing equal opportunity in education,” said Liz King, senior director for education equity at The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. “While her partisan confirmation was a failure of the Senate — and despite her past positions, the many mistakes in her confirmation hearing, and the reckless actions of the president — McMahon must first and foremost serve children and families and follow the law.”

Earlier this year, 100 civil rights and education groups sent a letter to senators opposing McMahon’s confirmation.

“Every child deserves the chance to learn, grow, and thrive free from discrimination,” said King. “We will be holding Secretary McMahon accountable and will continue to demand that our communities be protected, that our laws be followed, and that the president’s agenda of discrimination, exclusion, and ignorance be stopped.”