Transcription
Hearing a lot about the Department of Education, confused about what it actually does. Watch this.
This year, we're hearing a lot about government efficiency. To follow the debate, it helps to have data and facts. Don't hit that skip button. This stuff matters. I'm Steve Balmer, a data nerd who founded USA Facts, and here's a quick take on a hot topic.
Okay, so let's talk about the US Department of Education or ED for short. It was created in 1980. What does it cost? What does it do? And what would cutting the budget mean? Here's a quick look at the facts.
In 2024, the Department of Ed spent $268 billion, about 4% of the federal budget. Historically, it's averaged closer to 2%, although not in 2022 and 2023 when the Biden administration attempted student loan forgiveness, later reversed by the Supreme Court.
So, what does the money go toward? The biggest chunk, $159 billion or 59% goes to higher education, mostly federal student aid. This includes PEL grants, loans, and work study programs to help students pay for college. Another $104 billion or 39% goes to elementary, secondary, and vocational education. That includes $19 billion for Title One programs that help disadvantaged schools, $16 billion for special education, and $56 billion in COVID recovery funds paid out in 2024 from earlier contracts. The remaining 2% funds programs like job training for people with disabilities and research agencies like the National Center for Education Statistics, which collects most of the education data that we use.
Title 1 is frequently in the news. It supports schools in high poverty areas. Of the 99,000 public elementary and secondary schools in the US, about 51,000, just over half, receive some Title One funding, reaching 26 million or 51% of total public school students. Participation varies wildly by state from 21% of students in New Hampshire to 80% of students in New Mexico. In 2021-2022, Title One funding totaled $16 billion, 2.3% of all K-12 spending, equivalent to $639 per student enrolled in a Title One school.
As of 2024, the Department of Ed employed 4,29 people, the smallest cabinet agency by staff size, and workforce reductions in March 2025 reduced the staff by 47% to 2,183 people.
What's the impact? Department of Ed programs serve 50 million students across 129,000 public and private schools. Around 12 million college students receive federal aid. About 7 1/2 million K-12 students, 15% receive special education services.
Beyond funding, the Department of Ed enforces education laws and civil rights protections. It also collects and reports data like the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which tracks student performance nationwide in math, reading, and science. This data is crucial for identifying gaps in achievement, measuring progress, and shaping policies that work. Other key data includes the common core of data which gives states comparisons of statistics like student enrollment figures, dropout rates, student-teacher ratios and school funding and the integrated postsecondary education data system which reveals who is enrolling and completing college, what fields of study students pursue and public, private and for-profit institution finances.
So that's the Department of Education in a nutshell. Whether its functions change is up to policymakers. I for one hope that the national collection and publication of comprehensive education data continues. It is indispensable information for school districts and states trying to make decisions driven by facts, not guesswork. Without it, we will not know whether or not our education system is succeeding or failing and unnecessary risk for our children and our nation.
To find these facts and more, check out usafacts.org.org. As the government efficiency debate unfolds, let's make sure to stay up-to-date. Subscribe to the USA Facts YouTube channel and to our free newsletter. And please share this video with your family, your friends, your children, your co-workers. Spread the facts and data. The more we know, the stronger our democracy.