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McMahon embarks on four-state tour to put local leaders and parents ‘back into the driver’s seat’ of education
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FIRST ON FOX: Education Secretary Linda McMahon is set to launch a multi-state speaking tour Tuesday titled “The Next 250: American Education,” laying out her vision for the next 250 years of American education while championing the Trump administration’s efforts to reduce federal oversight and return power to local communities.
“The Trump Administration has moved at a rapid pace over the last 21 months to bring much-needed change to our nation’s education system. ‘The Next 250: American Education’ speaking series is an opportunity to highlight all we have accomplished and look to the work to come for American students, families, and educators,” McMahon told Fox News Digital ahead of her first stop in Utah.
McMahon will arrive in Utah on Tuesday to tout the administration’s efforts to reform K-12 education by delivering a keynote address on “returning education to the states, investing in meaningful learning and proven interventions, and expanding education freedom for millions of American students and families,” according to Department of Education (ED) officials.
“In every decision we make, we are not asking what’s better for growing government power, ideological agendas, or bureaucrats’ careers. We are returning education to its most basic obligation: to nurture the God-given potential of our children,” McMahon said.
AMERICA’S NEXT 250 YEARS BEGIN IN THE CLASSROOM
Following her Utah visit, McMahon plans to visit Nevada, Arizona, and Tennessee, where she will address workforce training programs, Pell Grants for community college students and rising higher education costs.
McMahon’s upcoming tour follows the department’s broader 50-state “Returning Education to the States” tour. The department has repeatedly emphasized to parents that administrative authority must shift to local leaders, citing $3 trillion in federal spending and national assessment results that the administration says show only three in 10 American students are proficient in math and reading.
“Despite $3 trillion in taxpayer investment in a federal Department of Education, only three in 10 students are proficient in reading and math. That is exactly why the Trump administration is returning education to the states and putting local leaders and parents back into the driver’s seat,” an ED spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
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McMahon, who pledged upon taking office to dismantle the agency from within, has previously said she would hire staff committed to eliminating their respective positions as part of a long-term goal to phase out federal oversight.
The tour follows President Donald Trump’s recent back-to-school event at the White House, where he promoted school choice initiatives alongside McMahon, students, parents, and educators in the Rose Garden. During the event, Trump argued that despite massive federal spending, student performance remains unacceptable and families require more educational flexibility. He also pledged to eliminate “far-left extremism” from classrooms.
As part of that push, the administration highlighted the upcoming Education Freedom Tax Credit. Scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2027, the program will allow individual taxpayers to receive a dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit of up to $1,700 — and up to $3,400 for married couples filing jointly — for cash contributions made to approved scholarship-granting organizations.
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The policy effort aligns with a recent interagency agreement between the Department of Education and the Department of the Treasury. Agency officials described the pact as a milestone step toward winding down the Department of Education.
Under the agreement, student lending operations will shift to the Treasury Department, which will take over operational responsibility for defaulted federal student loan collection and support efforts to help borrowers return to repayment. This marks one of nearly ten interagency partnerships finalized over the past year as ED seeks to downsize and transfer programs to other executive branch departments.
“As a mother and grandmother, I know firsthand that we only get one opportunity to educate and help our children reach their full God-given potential. That is exactly why the Trump administration is returning education to the states and ushering in the largest expansion of education freedom in American history,” McMahon said. “This tour has reached millions of families across our great nation, emphasizing the vital role parents play in their child’s life — not bureaucrats in Washington.”
McMahon has consistently maintained that the agency functions primarily as a “pass-through” for federal grants rather than a governing body over local curricula, noting that the agency’s role under federal law is frequently misunderstood.
Later this month, McMahon will conclude her tour in Tennessee, delivering a keynote focused on rebuilding public trust, addressing administrative oversight, and reviving academic standards in higher education, ED officials confirmed.
