At her confirmation hearing last week, Linda McMahon, Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of education, walked a thin line. On the one hand, she needed to assure Congress and the American people that she was fit for a cabinet-level position.

President Andrew Johnson signed the first official Department of Education into law. Although it was not a cabinet level position, it aimed to collect educational data an

Maybe because its support for students is popular with Republicans as well as Democrats. And because cutting that funding would blow a big hole in the budgets of red states.

It’s a familiar slash-and-burn tale as Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency team sweeps through the Education Department, and there’s still one more shoe to drop: the formal executive order to dismantle the agency.

Borrowers should prepare for a rocky road ahead if the agency closes. But experts say it won't happen overnight.

U.S. President Donald Trump's stated goal of closing the Department of Education comes after a long Republican-led push to chip away at the agency's funding and influence. Like other U.S. agencies, the Department of Education's budget is determined by Congress,