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When Congress passed a spending bill in late January, members over the U.S. Department of Education鈥檚 鈥渞ecent, unprecedented鈥� moves to shift its responsibilities to other agencies.

But they didn鈥檛 do anything to stop it. 

On Monday, Education Secretary Linda McMahon continued down that path, announcing that she鈥檒l hand over school safety and family engagement programs to the as part of her ongoing effort to 鈥渂reak up鈥� federal bureaucracy through interagency agreements.

鈥淏y leveraging HHS鈥檚 extensive emergency preparedness capabilities, we are creating a stronger foundation for supporting students and strengthening the safety of the school building,鈥� she said in a statement.

The move affects programs under the Office of Safe and Supportive Schools, including grants that help schools respond to traumatic events like school shootings and natural disasters. Full-Service Community Schools, Promise Neighborhoods, family engagement centers and Ready to Learn, which funds educational TV for preschoolers, are also part of that office.

Critics were quick to argue that the secretary is creating more complexity for schools and teachers. 鈥淣othing about this is better for kids,鈥� said Vito Borrello, executive director of the National Association for Family, School and Community Engagement. 鈥淚t’s inefficient. It’s chaotic.鈥� 

McMahon began transferring major education programs to other agencies last summer by moving career and technical education programs to the . She has told advocates for students with disabilities that 鈥渘othing shall remain鈥� at the department. The Labor Department will also assume responsibility for , including Title I, the department鈥檚 largest K-12 program. 

Democrats tried to insert binding language into the appropriations law that would stop McMahon from using these agreements to dismantle the agency. But Republicans balked. In a compromise, lawmakers attached a note calling for biweekly meetings with the department and saying they were worried that what McMahon is doing 鈥渨ill create inefficiencies, result in additional costs to the American taxpayer, and cause delays and administrative challenges.鈥�

At the time, Savannah Newhouse, a spokeswoman for the department, said officials aim to provide 鈥減roof of concept that interagency agreements provide the same protections, higher quality outcomes, and even more benefits for students, grantees and other education stakeholders.鈥� The next step, she added, is getting Congress to 鈥渃odify these partnerships.鈥�

Education advocates were relieved that Congress rejected drastic cuts to education programs proposed by President Donald Trump and House Republicans. But the question is 鈥渨hat happens to the funding and who is administering these programs,鈥� said Emily Merolli, a partner with the Sligo Law Group, and a former member of the department鈥檚 general counsel鈥檚 office.

A coalition of states and districts over mass layoffs at the department last year and amended their complaint to challenge the interagency agreements as well. But Merolli said the court may ultimately have to look at whether there have been any 鈥渄ownstream harms鈥� from offloading programs to different agencies.

Family advocates

The K-12 programs affected by this latest action have already seen disruption since President Donald Trump took office. 

Last May, the department grant, roughly $23 million that supported educational programming like Sesame Street and Reading Rainbow.  In September, the department canceled grants to five statewide family engagement centers serving six states. The centers each received $1 million annually to support districts in reaching underserved families. 

As with McMahon鈥檚 decision to cancel other grants and contracts, the centers were told their work was no longer a priority for this administration, which has aimed to eliminate programs promoting diversity, equity and inclusion.

Borrello decried the decision in his November newsletter, saying that schools can鈥檛 support families 鈥渨ithout a foundation of relational trust which is cultivated through honoring the diverse cultures and values of the families served. There is nothing controversial about this.鈥�

Then in December, McMahon canceled remaining Full-Service Community Schools grants, totaling $60 million, to 18 grantees. They included two grants, a combined $18.5 million, to ACT Now Illinois, a statewide afterschool provider network. The organization and has been in negotiations with the department over restoring the grants.

To respond to increases in students鈥� mental health needs, the 2,300-student Herrin school district in southern Illinois used the money to hire a social worker for each of its five schools. 

鈥淲e really need somebody to advocate not just for the students, but for the families as well,鈥� said Valerie Clodi, the district鈥檚 director of development. 

The district also on school supplies for students, free STEM-focused events for families and expanded career pathways programs. Schools saw drops in chronic absenteeism, Clodi said, and increases in performance among high schoolers on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, an assessment that the state accepts as an indicator of readiness for college. But after next week, the team of five family advocates will be down to one. An assistant who helped families who need housing or other resources also left. 

Clodi said she could see an overlap between HHS and community schools when it comes to focusing on students鈥� mental health. But 鈥渢hat’s just one pillar鈥� of the model, she said. 

Borrello called the move to HHS 鈥渢he best worst-case scenario鈥� and better than moving the programs to the Labor Department. But he noted that putting family engagement programs and K-12 under two separate agencies could undermine efforts to get parents more involved in their children鈥檚 education.

鈥淭his couldn’t come at a worse time,鈥� he said. 鈥淪cores are beginning to improve and now we do this.鈥� 

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