Elon Musk's DOGE cuts $900 million from agency that tracks US students' progress

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has cut down $900 million from a federal agency that tracks students’ progress in America, saying there is not much need for it.

Musk’s team on Feb 11 slashed as many as 169 contracts which accounted for most of the Education Department’s Institute of Education Sciences work. It is now unclear as to what degree the Institute of Education Sciences will continue to function.

Few of the contracts were for long-term studies where the agency tracked a student’s learning from kindergarten through high school, research on the effectiveness of support for young people with disabilities, and a study evaluating strategies for teaching elementary school reading, as per a list of cuts obtained by the Associated Press.

However, the move will not affect the institute’s primary work, including the NAEP assessment, known as the nation’s report card, and the College Scorecard, a database of university costs and outcomes, Education Department spokesperson Madison Biedermann said.

The cuts raised alarm among education experts arguing that they could hamper the accountability of America’s education system.

The contracts cut at IES have been from academic studies to logistical support and contracts to participate in international studies. Several deliver research that was mandated by Congress.

The cuts are counterproductive and destructive, Rachel Dinkes, President and CEO of the Knowledge Alliance, a coalition of education research firms was quoted as saying.

Historically, achievement gaps have indicated low-income students and students of color falling behind their peers.

“Cutting out at the knees the one independent agency that helps improve student outcomes is ridiculous,” Dinkes said.

US President Donald Trump had appointed Elon Musk and businessman-turned-politician Vivek Ramaswamy to lead his administration's Department of Government Efficiency.

In a statement on Nov 12, Trump announced that Ramaswamy and Musk would head the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which will be tasked with "slashing excess regulations" and “cutting wasteful expenditures.”

The Institute of Education Sciences is the primary source of information on the health of America’s education system. The education body tracks students’ progress across demographics and evaluates the effectiveness of federal programs, while colleges and schools rely on its research to improve student outcomes.

IES shines a light on inequity and its work is “more than just numbers and statistics,” said the Education Trust, a nonprofit research and advocacy group.

“Without it, we are left in the dark, unable to see where educational gaps exist or how to close them,” the group said in a statement.

Mark Schneider, a former IES commissioner appointed by President Donald Trump in 2018, said the cuts give the new administration a chance to rethink programs that have changed little in decades. But so far, it’s unclear if or how the contracts will be replaced.

“The question is not what happened on Monday (Feb 11), it’s what happens next,” Schneider said.

“If we just swing this sledgehammer, break all this stuff and say, okay, done, then we’ve wasted an opportunity to fix things.”