A federal research office that tracks the progress of America’s students is being hit with almost $900 million in cuts after Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency found no need for much of its work.
It’s unclear to what degree the Education Department’s Institute of Education Sciences will continue to exist after Musk’s team slashed scores of contracts. Industry groups said at least 169 contracts were suddenly terminated Monday, accounting for much of the institute's work.
The Education Department did not immediately share details on the cuts. Madison Biedermann, an agency spokesperson, said the action will not affect IES’ primary work, including the NAEP assessment, known as the nation’s report card, and the College Scorecard, a database of university costs and outcomes.
Advocates for students raised alarms the cuts could hurt the accountability of America’s education system, leaving the nation in the dark on schools′ effectiveness. Historically, achievement gaps have shown low-income students and students of color falling behind their peers.
Biedermann declined to share the names of vendors whose contracts were cut.
"Contracts have sensitive business information, our contractors have reputational interests that we want to preserve, and our contractors did not agree to have their business information publicly disclosed outside of the FOIA context,” she said.
In response to questions, she referred to a social media post from DOGE that said Musk's team had terminated 89 contracts worth $881 million, including $1.5 million to a contractor hired to “observe mailing and clerical operations” at a mail center. Another post said 29 grants totaling $101 million for training in diversity, equity and inclusion had been cut.
The Institute of Education Sciences is a central source of information on the health of America’s education system. Across the country, it tracks student progress over time and across demographics. It evaluates the effectiveness of federal programs, and colleges and schools rely on its research to improve student outcomes.
Among the contracts being cut is a study exploring how to accelerate math learning for students in fourth and fifth grade. Known as ReSolve, the project was being led by research group MDRC. A federal notice obtained by The Associated Press ordered MDRC to halt the project immediately “for the government’s convenience.”
Last month IES released the latest NAEP results, revealing that America's children have continued to lose ground on reading skills and made little improvement in math in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Congress gave the institute about $800 million last year, roughly 1% of the Education Department’s annual budget.
Two prominent research associations jointly called for the contracts to be reinstated, saying much of IES’ work is mandated by Congress and relies on contracts to support its limited staff. The groups said 169 contracts had been cut, curbing the institute’s ability to report data on school finances and student outcomes.
“Without such research, student learning and development will be harmed,” according to leaders of the American Educational Research Association and the Council of Professional Associations on Federal Statistics.
The institute oversees a wide range of work, including the administration of the NAEP exam and U.S. participation in PISA, an assessment that compares academic progress across nations. It’s also a major funder of education research and keeps a database of research that has shown results in improving education.
IES shines a light on inequity and its work is “more than just numbers and statistics,” said the Education Trust, a nonprofit research and advocacy group. “Without it, we are left in the dark, unable to see where educational gaps exist or how to close them,” the group said in a statement.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., a former teacher and member of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, said she will be “sounding the alarm” to fight back.
“An unelected billionaire is now bulldozing the research arm of the Department of Education — taking a wrecking ball to high-quality research and basic data we need to improve our public schools,” the Washington senator said in a statement. “Cutting off these investments after the contract has already been inked is the definition of wasteful.”
Trump has promised to abolish the Education Department and turn its power over to states and schools. The White House is considering an order that would direct Trump's education chief to dismantle the agency as far as possible while calling on Congress to fully shut it down.
It's unclear how far Trump could act on his own to slash the department's spending, much of which is ordered by Congress.
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