How cuts to the Department of Education will impact STEM education

The education landscape shifted dramatically last week when President Trump signed an executive order instructing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to "take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure" of the Department of Education, alongside implementing sweeping federal education budget cuts that are sending ripples through K-12 systems nationwide.

As school leaders, you need to understand both the immediate realities and prepare for potential long-term impacts, particularly in STEM education. This two-part series examines what these changes mean for your schools and provides actionable strategies to navigate this challenging transition.

The current situation

The Department of Education has already initiated mass layoffs, cutting nearly half its staff across all divisions and effectively gutting its capacity to administer programs. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has been particularly affected, with over 100 statisticians and analysts placed on leave, leaving just three staffers to maintain essential data functions which effectively freezes the collection and analysis of education data nationwide.

For STEM education specifically, these cuts have targeted several critical areas:

1. Teacher Training Programs: The administration has canceled major teacher development grants, including the Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED) program, the Teacher and School Leader Incentive program, and the Teacher Quality Partnership which together represented over $600 million in funding. These programs were specifically designed to address teacher shortages in STEM fields and their elimination threatens to worsen already critical staffing issues in science and mathematics classrooms.
2. Technical Assistance: All 10 Regional Education Laboratories and 19 Comprehensive Centers that provide research and technical assistance to states have been terminated. These centers offered crucial support for STEM curriculum enhancement and standards implementation.
3. Data Collection and Evaluation: With NCES effectively shuttered, educators lose access to critical assessments in math and science, tracking of STEM achievement gaps, and evaluations of effective programs creating a blind spot for policymakers and educators trying to address learning gaps.

Immediate impacts on school districts

For district and school leaders, these changes present several immediate challenges:

• Uncertainty in STEM Teacher Pipeline: In California alone, nearly 600 aspiring teachers in STEM and other shortage areas were mid-training through these grants and now face an uncertain future potentially leaving critical positions vacant and classrooms underserved.
  
• Budget Planning Disruptions: While the administration has stated that formula-driven aid like Title I (for low-income school districts) and IDEA (special education) would be preserved for the current school year, the Department's diminished capacity raises concerns about future distribution. As one superintendent of a small district in New York noted, without federal dollars that fund reading and math intervention teachers and technology for enrichment, "key programs and staff members would disappear" affecting direct instructional support.
• Loss of Curriculum Support: Without the Regional Education Labs and Comprehensive Centers, districts lose access to research-based guidance on STEM curriculum enhancements, potentially stalling ongoing initiatives particularly in resource-strapped districts that can't easily replace that expert support.

Action steps for school leaders

While the situation continues to evolve, there are several immediate actions school leaders can take:

1. Conduct a Federal Funding Audit: Review all programs in your district that receive federal funding, identifying those most vulnerable to cuts. Pay particular attention to STEM-related positions, resources, and initiatives.
2. Develop Contingency Plans: For each vulnerable program or position, create tiered contingency plans (best, moderate, worst-case scenarios) and identify potential alternative funding sources or structural adjustments
3. Engage with State Education Leaders: Connect with your state education agency to understand how they're responding to these changes. Some states are exploring legal challenges or planning to reallocate state funds to buffer impacts.
4. Document Program Outcomes: Collect robust data on the effectiveness of your STEM programs, teacher development initiatives, and intervention strategies. This documentation can support funding appeals and help secure alternative support.
5. Communicate Transparently: Share honest but measured communications with your staff, families, and community about potential impacts and your plans to address them.

Looking ahead

In Part 2 of this series, we'll explore longer-term strategies for sustaining STEM education excellence despite federal funding changes, including community partnerships, philanthropic engagement, and innovative program designs that maximize existing resources.

For now, focus on thorough assessment, careful planning, and open communication. Despite these challenges, school leaders have demonstrated remarkable resilience and creativity in maintaining educational quality during periods of change and uncertainty.

Jason McKenna is V.P. of Global Educational Strategy for VEX Robotics and author of “What STEM Can Do for Your Classroom: Improving Student Problem Solving, Collaboration, and Engagement, Grade K-6.” His work specializes in curriculum development, global educational strategy, and engaging with educators and policymakers worldwide. For more of his insights, subscribe to his newsletter.