State organization reacts to federal education department layoffs

The U.S. Department of Education announced mass layoffs on Tuesday, cutting almost half of the department’s employees.

More than 1,300 department employees will be put on administrative leave March 21, joining another 600 who resigned or retired over the last two months.

“Today’s reduction in force reflects the Department of Education’s commitment to efficiency, accountability, and ensuring that resources are directed where they matter most: to students, parents, and teachers,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement.

Nebraska State Education Association president Tim Royers said even if they aren’t immediate, changes at the federal level can trickle down to the state education system.

“People look at that and go, ‘Well, I don't think that immediately affects me. It should be fine,’” he said. “When the reality is it absolutely does impact folks. That impact might not hit today. It might be a week from now, a month from now, a year from now, but it is going to diminish our ability to serve our kids.”

NPR reported the cuts include hundreds of layoffs at the Federal Student Aid office, Institute of Education Sciences and Office for Civil Rights within the department. A Nebraska Department of Education spokesperson said the state is “monitoring for guidance.”

Commissioner Brian Maher spoke at last week’s State Board of Education meeting about national conversations surrounding the U.S. Department of Education. He said the state department would make changes when needed.

“We know essentially the same thing we know today that we knew yesterday that we knew last week, and we haven’t changed any of our operations as a result of anything changing in Washington,” Maher said at the meeting.

Royers said the federal department helps students in ways the public doesn’t always see. It provides accountability of services for students in special education and low-income students.

“When you eliminate as many positions as you do, that diminishes their ability to provide oversight, to investigate what's going on at the state and local level, and to make sure that we're held accountable to the expectations of what we should be doing for our kids,” he said.

Other cuts to grants within the department have impacted Nebraska programs like Project RAÍCES, which aimed to help build the teacher workforce in the state. Royers said he’s concerned how cuts to programs like Project RAÍCES and these mass layoffs could hurt education long-term.

“My daughter only gets one freshman year. My youngest daughter only gets one fifth grade,” he said. “Even if we're able to restore these programs years from now, there will be a generation of kids whose education has been permanently harmed.”