The US Department of Education has cut its staff in half, and is determined to gradually eliminate the department.

Hundreds of employees at the US Department of Education have begun receiving notices of layoffs since Tuesday of this week. Previously, there were a number of employees who voluntarily quit their jobs to enjoy better benefits from the US Government. Before the staff reduction was implemented, the US Department of Education had about 4,100 employees.

US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon made an official statement: "The ongoing staff reduction reflects the Department of Education's commitment to operating effectively and responsibly. We want to ensure that resources are directed to the most important people: students, parents and teachers."

Ms. McMahon confirmed that this move to cut staff is the first step in the process of gradually eliminating the US Department of Education, in line with the direction that US President Donald Trump has given her. However, Ms. McMahon also confirmed that whether or not to actually eliminate the US Department of Education still needs the unanimous approval of the US Congress.

Ms McMahon believes the mass layoffs the US Department of Education is carrying out are necessary to "eliminate bureaucracy and bloated operations".

About 1,300 employees of the US Department of Education will receive notices of termination in this round of layoffs, their labor contracts will be terminated within 90 days.

Those who have been laid off will begin working from home the following day. They will be placed on paid leave starting March 21. Employees will receive varying amounts of severance pay, depending on how long they have worked at the Department of Education.

Last month, 63 probationary employees at the Ministry of Education were laid off. More than 300 employees voluntarily left to receive a lump sum payment of up to $25,000. About 260 others left and opted to receive their benefits in stages.

What is happening at the US Department of Education is of particular interest because it is part of a plan to downsize the federal government promoted by US President Donald Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

If the US Department of Education were abolished, how would its work be handled?

For now, senior officials at the U.S. Department of Education say the massive layoffs will not affect the department's most important functions and missions, such as providing financial aid to American students.

Several U.S. Department of Education offices will be closed following the layoffs. The offices will be consolidated, reducing the number of points of contact.

Some employees of the US Department of Education, although not affected by this round of layoffs, also expressed their concerns to the US media. They believe that there will be more mass layoffs in the future.

Several unions representing workers at the US Department of Education have voiced concerns about the impact on workers, as well as the welfare of tens of millions of American students.

The US media and public also questioned the quality of work at the US Department of Education after a sharp reduction in staff.

For example, the U.S. Department of Education oversees the student loan and repayment history of nearly 43 million people, and one in six American adults has borrowed money from a student loan to attend college.

With the drastic cuts in staff, as well as the plan to gradually abolish the Ministry of Education, many people wonder how the student support program, as well as debt repayment tracking, will be handled in the future.

Regarding this, US President Donald Trump said that the student support program and debt repayment monitoring will be transferred to other agencies, such as the Treasury Department, the Commerce Department or the Small Business Administration (SBA).

"The Department of Education should not be managing loans and repayments. That should not be the job of the Department," Mr. Trump asserted.

To date, the U.S. Department of Education has been operating financial aid programs for public schools that are struggling to be self-sufficient, and programs to help poor students borrow money to pay for college tuition. Each year, the U.S. Department of Education receives a budget of about $79 billion.

US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said she believes that transferring the most important tasks of the Department of Education to other departments will make the work better and more professional.

“A big part of my job right now is to convince Congress that the steps we are taking are in the best interests of America’s children and young people,” McMahon said.

"This is the most complicated step in the process of streamlining and eliminating the Department of Education, but once it is done, everything will become very simple," US President Donald Trump affirmed.

Some experts have spoken out in support of Mr. Trump on this issue. For example, in the process of borrowing and repaying student loans in the US, students need to provide the Department of Education with information on their income and economic conditions and that of their relatives. Meanwhile, the US Treasury already has this information, so the US Treasury has the ability to reduce administrative procedures.

In the United States, when a federal agency is shut down, the tasks assigned to that agency are transferred to other agencies. This is essentially what US President Donald Trump is aiming for. He aims to transfer the tasks of the US Department of Education to other departments, while also giving more responsibilities to the governments in each state.

According to USA Today/New York Post

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/bo-giao-duc-my-tung-buoc-bi-xoa-bo-cong-viec-cua-bo-nay-se-nhu-the-nao-20250312144022671.htm