SANTA CRUZ — Early last week, the U.S. Department of Education took a major step toward President Donald Trump’s stated goal of dismantling the 46-year-old federal agency by gutting it of half its workforce.
The agency, led by newly sworn-in Education Secretary Linda McMahon, announced it would lay off more than 1,300 of its 4,100 employees and while eliminating the department altogether likely requires an act of Congress, the sweeping reductions sent shockwaves across the country.
Though the federal government’s presence may not be felt in the day-to-day operations of most classrooms in Santa Cruz County, the massive upheaval at what was already one of the smallest cabinet-level federal agencies has raised questions about what will happen when the impact of this dramatic downsizing — and specter of agency dissolution — reaches Santa Cruz’s shores.
To better understand what impact the recent decisions in Washington could have on local schools, the Sentinel spoke with the county’s top education administrator — county Superintendent of Schools Faris Sabbah. Sabbah arrived at the interview well-practiced, as he and other district leaders across the county spent much of last week fielding questions from the community about the federal fallout.
The day after his interview with the Sentinel on March 13, Sabbah and 15 other county education leaders sent a letter to local families to both express their shared concern about what was unfolding in Washington and reassure the community that there are still some guardrails in place.
“Historically, Congress has blocked any attempts to dismantle the Department of Education and impact these essential services — which polls continue to show are overwhelmingly supported by the public,” Sabbah and his colleagues wrote. “At the same time, we must anticipate that the extent of ongoing staff reductions and shifting priorities at the DOE will have inevitable impacts on its ability to continue providing programs and services.”
In his interview with the Sentinel, which has been edited for length and clarity, Sabbah expands on how the federal agency serves local schools, what programs and services are most at risk in the wake of the Trump administration’s recent actions, and how state and local leaders plan to fight back.
Q: Can you explain the role the Education Department plays in our local education system?
A: We don’t have a lot of direct involvement with the Education Department, but they play an important role in supporting the educational system. We receive a lot of federal funds — about 12% of the budget in the county (Office of Education) comes from federal sources. Most of those sources are managed by the Education Department — they go through the California Department of Education and then the funding comes to us. So, the management of that funding allocation, calculations and accountability is generally done by the Education Department working with the state. They also oversee the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights when it comes to complaints and that function is really important as one of the steps and protections for people in our school community. They also help support the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) system for higher education and a variety of other support systems. For special education, some of our funding comes from federal sources. They provide support and oversight for ensuring that students have access to Free Appropriate Public Education. If families don’t feel like that is being delivered, they’re able to take their concerns and complaints and the Education Department helps ensure protections for the rights of students with disabilities.
Q: What local impacts could the department’s recent cuts bring and have we felt any of those impacts yet?
A: The effect of these cuts is going to take a little bit of time because of the process I described where the (federal funds) go to the state and then to the (county). Usually that’s on an annual basis, according to the federal fiscal calendar starting Sept. 1. So we’re going to see some of the impacts of the cuts to program management soon. There have been some cuts we’ve heard about that have already taken place. For example, Cal State Monterey Bay notified folks that they did not get funding for their Teacher Quality Partnership Grant. We are aware of cuts to educational research programs, especially at higher educational institutions. So not only are we concerned about the reductions taking place at the Education Department, but we’re also looking at the funding sources that it manages and that come from the budgets approved by Congress that are then provided to the department for distribution.
We’re also concerned about potential cuts to Title I programs, cuts to Pell Grants, reductions in Medicare and other programs. The combination of the Education Department not having the workforce to be able to manage and support and provide the oversight they have, and the possibility of cuts to the funding sources is going to have a deep impact on us here locally.
Q: So it’s not just future budget planning, but also the administration of existing programs?
A: We know for example the Office for Civil Rights is handling hundreds of cases of complaints and seven out of its 12 offices (nationwide) have been shut down. They are currently managing complaints and have been told that those have to be put on hold. That is going to be extremely disruptive and won’t bring resolution to those complaints. The concern is how much of their ability to provide oversight are they going to be able to do with such huge reductions in their workforce?
Q: Which students or programs are most likely to feel the effect of these cuts?
A: A lot of the programs managed by the Education Department are for some of our most vulnerable and marginalized communities. Many of these programs were established in 1965 to support students who have been historically unsuccessful in the school system. Title I programs, for example, include students in poverty, incarcerated students, students that qualify for migrant education as well as students with disabilities.
So these federal programs are really established as safety nets to provide support for the states and local districts to provide additional services to these students that have a higher level of need. Losing these safety nets is going to have the greatest impact on students from these vulnerable communities and from districts that have higher numbers of those communities.
Q: What other local programs does the 12% of federal funds go to?
A: Some funding helps pay for Medi-Cal supports. We get teacher quality and education programs — like professional development funding — that helps pay for both teachers’ and administrator training. There are supplemental programs that pay for after-school programs. A lot of these are what we call “supplemental programs,” meaning they are above and beyond the core program. They’re usually designed to help students who have, again, been historically unsuccessful in the school system. These are ways of enhancing their educational experience to increase the probability of their success in our schools.
Q: Is there anything the county Office of Education is doing or can do to buffer local schools against these impacts?
A: Our state leaders, including our attorney general and state superintendent, have asserted that the moment that they’re able to, they’re going to take legal action against the federal government for politicizing these federal sources of funding and that it’s going to have a detrimental effect on students in our state. We’re working with other county superintendents to stay connected with this statewide effort to protect these funding sources and ensure that there’s not a disruption to the services our students deserve.
We’re also looking at providing reassurance to our families because there’s a lot of concern and fear. We’re going to do everything we can to continue to provide services when it comes to the communities that are being targeted such as the LGBTQ+ community, our trans students — really ensuring they understand that we continue to stand with them. And for our immigrant community: that our schools are going to continue to be safe spaces for them. That reassurance and that allyship I think is extremely important. We’re also looking at making sure our community knows their rights and are staying informed. Also, providing additional supports in our schools, such as protocols if immigration officials were to show up at our schools, and to be able to respond appropriately and do everything we can do keep our students and our community safe.