Federal appeals court throws roadblock at Trump's education reform agenda

A federal appeals court refused to grant the U.S. Department of Education’s (DOE) request to put a temporary halt on a district judge’s preliminary injunction last week, preventing the Trump administration from moving ahead with plans to dismantle the department.

Washington, D.C., and two states previously requested the court to halt the announced DOE and Trump administration’s planned Reduction in Force (RIF) of half of the remaining employees at the DOE, as well as the closure of the department.

The dismantling was announced on March 11, 2025, and two days later, the Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon, President Donald Trump and others were sued in the District of Massachusetts.

Following suit, five labor organizations and two school districts did the same.

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The plaintiffs requested the court for an injunction against the transfer of certain functions out of the Department, which Trump announced on March 21.

The District Court merged the two cases, and after reviewing the factual findings, issued an order to place a stop on the president’s actions.

The Trump administration appealed the decision and requested a temporary stop to the district court’s order, but on Wednesday that request was denied.

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"What is at stake in this case, the District Court found, was whether a nearly half-century-old cabinet department would be permitted to carry out its statutorily assigned functions or prevented from doing so by a mass termination of employees aimed at implementing the effective closure of that department," the court of appeals wrote. "Given the extensive findings made by the District Court and the absence of any contrary evidence having been submitted by the appellants, we conclude that the appellants' stay motion does not warrant our interfering with the ordinary course of appellate adjudication in the face of what the record indicates would be the apparent consequences of our doing so. The appellants' motion for a stay is denied."

Republican senators, in April, introduced the "Returning Education to Our States Act" after Trump signed an Executive Order to close the DOE in March.

If passed, the bill would redirect portions of the department to other federal agencies, such as the Departments of Interior, Treasury, Health and Human Services, Labor, Defense, Justice and State.

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"The Department of Education was created to collect education data and advise state and local organizations on best practices," Sen. Mike Rounds, R-South Dakota, told Fox News Digital at the time. "Since then, it has grown into an oversized bureaucracy that dictates one-size-fits-all policies, standards and practices for students across the nation."

The bill came amid widespread support among Republicans to eliminate the agency, including the current sitting Education Secretary, Linda McMahon, who detailed her "vision for eliminating the Department of Education" in a Fox News op-ed.

McMahon and Rounds recently held a meeting where the "Returning Education to Our States Act" was discussed.

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In addition to eliminating the agency, the legislation would also make key changes to education compliance requirements, making it so that schools would no longer be required to administer standardized tests to identify struggling schools (CSI and TSI). The bill would also allow schools more autonomy to set teacher certification standards and professional development plans.

The executive order issued by President Donald Trump directs the department to "take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the States and local communities," but it takes an act of Congress to formally abolish the department.

The Republican-led bill could potentially accompany President Donald Trump’s executive order and campaign promise to reshape the American education system as it heads to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions for debate.

Fox News Digital’s Preston Mizell contributed to this report.