Is FAFSA part of the Education Department? And other things to know
Trump looks to dismantle Department of Education
As President Donald Trump starts to take action on education, a White House official confirmed that he plans to reevaluate the future of the Education Department throughout his presidency. FOX 35's Amanda Mckenzie joined LiveNOW from FOX with the details.
The Department of Education has been affected by some of President Donald Trump’s recent sweeping changes.
Dozens of department employees were put on leave in response to his DEI rollback initiative, and the department’s funding could be jeopardized pending the federal funding freeze.
Additionally, Trump has repeatedly said that he will sign an executive order that will aim to dismantle the department.
Here are some key things to know as Trump is evaluating the function and future of the department:
What is the Department of Education?
The backstory:
The idea of the Department of Education dates back to the 1860s, when an office under President Andrew Jackson was created to collect information and statistics about schools.
Its status was elevated throughout the ‘50s and ‘60s, as more federal funding was pouring into American education during the Space Race, the War on Poverty and the Civil Rights Movement.
In 1979, under President Jimmy Carter, several offices were combined to create the Department of Education we know today.
By the numbers:
Inside the Department of Education is 17 different offices, which all contribute to the work that the department does to improve education outcomes for students of all ages, according to its website.
Dig deeper:
The agency’s main role is financial. The department’s key functions include:
- Student loans and financial aid
- Civil rights enforcement
- College accreditation
- Money for schools
RELATED: Here's what the Department of Education does, has done
What they're saying:
Trump is not the only Republican candidate to be critical of the department - or even call for its dissolution.
Ronald Reagan also aimed to eliminate the Department of Education, created under President Carter, as part of the 1980 Republican Party platform. The LA Times described it as a "major goal" when Reagan took office in 1981.
In Jan. 1985, Reagan said, "As you know, I have previously recommended the abolition of the Department of Education. This was because I believed that federal educational programs could be administered effectively without a Cabinet-level agency. While I still feel that this is the best approach, that proposal has received very little support in Congress."
President George W. Bush also sought to reform the department with his No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2002.
Is FAFSA part of the Department of Education?

FILE - Students walk across the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
Yes, the office that manages the FAFSA, or the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, is a critical part of the Department of Education.
The FAFSA was developed by the office of Federal Student Aid (FSA), which is an office of the Department of Education.
The FSA also manages outstanding loans and repayments.
By the numbers:
The Education Department processes more than 17 million FAFSA forms each year.
The department also awards more than $120 billion a year in low-interest loans, grants and work-study funds to approximately 13 million students.
What we know:
As mentioned, Trump has repeated campaign promises to dismantle the Department of Education.
What we don't know:
It’s unclear how dismantling the department would affect its duties.
Trump has not offered details on how the agency’s core functions of sending federal money to local districts and schools would be handled, though he has called for shifting those functions to the states.
The Source: Background and historical information about the Department of Education was taken from its government website, ed.gov, and The Associated Press. Information about FAFSA and the FSA was taken from the office’s official government websites, studentaid.gov, and ed.gov. This story was reported from Detroit.