The U.S. Department of Education has spent more than $3 trillion since 1980, with little to show for it.
Reading and math scores have barely budged, achievement gaps remain, and too many families are trapped in a system that fails their children.
A year later, the results are striking. The department has overhauled operations—cutting nearly half its staff, reducing administrative layers, and consolidating offices. Grants have been streamlined, programs merged, reporting reduced, and oversight of the $1.6 trillion student-loan portfolio shifted to a more capable agency.
