17 upvotes, 10 direct replies (showing 10)
View submission: The Mental Gymnastics is Infuriating
I’m not a teacher so I would appreciate everyone’s perspective on this, and feedback to my thoughts.
I am an independent conservative. My view is that too much of the DOE money is spent on administrators that not only don’t support teachers, but actively get in your way. If I could wave a magic wand, the administrative bloat would be reduced and that money would be redirected to huge increases in teacher salary (think 30-50%), classroom supplies, technology, and basically anything that would make teachers more effective and feel supported and appreciated for the national service they give.
Thanks in advance for anyone who replies.
Edit: thanks to everyone who was respectful and told me where I was mistaken without insults or generalizations, as I really am concerned our teachers are not treated with respect and face difficulties from admin (which I read over and over again on this sub). Overall though, not surprised but still disappointed that simply stating I was “conservative” was enough for folks to make assumptions and attack me. Reddit gonna Reddit I guess.
Comment by AlphaIronSon at 08/03/2025 at 20:20 UTC*
46 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Without going too deep into it cause 1)the internet is available for all and 2)so is how public schools/districts etc direct/divert their $.
I’ll say this: your view is wrong. Full stop. Unless you have $ that is *explicitly earmarked for “administration”* which you would know going back to 1&2 above, the scenario you state just isn’t a thing.
Ed $ from the federal govt (which is coming from Congress BTW. dept of education doesn’t send out $ that Congress doesn’t authorize) is categorical meaning it has to be spent on certain things AND largely it’s given to the states en bloc who then pass it on to the local school boards/districts. Categorical meaning this money has to be spent on these categories- be that certain populations of students like for SPED, homeless, Foster, language learners, low income for ex, or increased technology or upgrading facilities etc. HOW it’s spent to address those groups is largely a local deal.
If you don’t like how your schools are being run, it is truly a situation of looking in the mirror and the eyes of your literal neighbor and this goes for everywhere in the country.
The federal government has very very VERY little actual say so in the running OR function of schools in your area. What the federal government can AND does say is “ if State X/ Local entity Y wants these funds then these are the rules/requirements in order to get that” but every single state and local agency has the option to not do that and just not take those funds but that would require those local officials then having to answer the question of local voter X : why did you turn down XYZ money and where do you plan to make that up.
For the record, this concept is the reason the drinking agent in every state is 21. In the 80s MAAD went to Reagan and said we need to curb teen drinking & driving so Reagan went to Congress and in the highway omnibus included a line that says “if you want money for your interstate highway system you will raise your drinking age to 21” Because drinking like education is not mentioned in the constitution so it’s a local issue[1]. However you notice that for all of the complaints about “local control & federal overreach and personal responsibility” and bluster Republicans like have nobody’s gone off that 21 drinking age & put it back to 18? It’s cause they DO want that sweet sweet federal money and preferable with less strings in the form of rules, attached.
1: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Minimum_Drinking_Age_Act
So if the schools in Odd Afternoon’s county or city have high administrative bloat as you put it? That’s a function of the effort or lack thereof you and your fellow School board voters. The ED nor anyone outside of that voting area for that matter has anything to do with that.
What the ED DOES do a lot of though? Advocating for the programs that other people have mentioned vocational education/adjusting your local Ed goals to match current needs/trends, inclusion programs, also managing federal student loans, and here’s a real key one and might give you a little insight into why Republicans are always so anxious to dismantle department of education: ***provide oversight to ensure that public funds are properly (and equitably)spent on ALL the nations children***
Yes..the very “we’re going to make sure your tax dollars are being spent right” banner is done by the very entity they’re trying to dismantle
At the end of the day all of this is straight gilded age “remove the oversight to enable more grift” stuff with a new sheen and some buzzwords thrown in.
Edit for typos and addl context.
Comment by darkhorizon86 at 08/03/2025 at 20:23 UTC
26 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Less than 1% of the education departments budget goes to payroll. You could fire everyone and not make a dent in it. So please explain how you think sending people home jobless will help kids to become more educated? Your entire premise is vague and false. Make specific claims and we can debate.
Happy to inform you of the facts and I encourage you to research from non biased sources
Comment by sfg1020 at 08/03/2025 at 20:17 UTC
48 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I appreciate you thinking of us but the answer isn’t to blow the whole thing up, it’s to vote on REFORM. Removing it is only going to keep admin richer while us and the kids suffer from lack of resources we used to get with Title I funds.
Title I funds give teachers a bonus in pay to entice us to work in underprivileged and underserved communities that usually have more difficult student populations.
At my site, Title I funds are what pay for all of my student supplies so that I don’t have to pay out of my own paycheck to support students who can’t afford supplies.
Title I funds provide food to students who don’t otherwise get to eat
Title I funds provide better sports programs at low cost of living areas that aren’t supported by high property taxes.
Title I is a GOOD thing that will devastate poor, rural communities in middle America who have benefited off the federal fund contributions of higher cost of living states such as CA and NY.
Comment by LilahLibrarian at 08/03/2025 at 20:19 UTC*
18 upvotes, 3 direct replies
What gives you the impression of administration bloat?
Most school funded is by the district not by the department of education. Schools get direct funds from title one funds which are for schools with high concentration of students living in poverty.
I don't trust the trump/musk administration to give those funds directly to states or districts. And I wouldn't be surprised if the school districts decide to use their title one funds to do fakakta things like build a new football stadium
Comment by Suspicious-Dirt668 at 08/03/2025 at 20:56 UTC
9 upvotes, 0 direct replies
This is a great point. Unfortunately most administrators are funded through your town’s taxes not through the DOE. DOE provides some funding for IDEA and Title 1. IDEA funding goes for equipment for students with disabilities and Title 1 funding is for schools with a high percentage of students living below the poverty line. When schools are given funding through IDEA or title 1 there are strict rules schools must follow when spending those funds. For example, schools cannot simply pay for administrators out of the funds.
In our school title one funding pays for our two intervention teachers (one math and one reading) these teachers work with students struggling in reading and math). In the past we have also used title 1 funding for things like enrichment programs in science, and to fund a teacher who works with English language learners. Larger schools or inner city schools who are underfunded by their towns might get more money. They might be able to hire two or three teachers in these areas.
Our title 1 funds have been cut in recent years, so sadly we had to eliminate a couple of after school programs (one that provided teacher support for homework and one that helped students with leadership opportunities in our community).
IDEA usually pays for equipment. For example, I have had several hearing impaired students over the years and IDEA paid for and maintained some of assisted hearing devices (kind of like microphones worn by teachers so students can access instruction).
I feel like the general public has this idea that the DOE throws money at schools and we spend it in a haphazard way. The reality is the DOE is very purposeful in how much we are given AND schools need to carefully document what funds are used for. IDEA, Title 1, and other funds are very strict in what we can spend money on and there are severe consequences for failing to spend money in specific ways.
Comment by MWBrooks1995 at 08/03/2025 at 20:26 UTC
11 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Yeah, you’d wave your magic wand and reduce the bloat.
You wouldn’t wave you magic wand and *eliminate the department of education*.
Comment by [deleted] at 08/03/2025 at 20:47 UTC
5 upvotes, 1 direct replies
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Comment by neenerneener_fayce at 08/03/2025 at 20:49 UTC
4 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Thanks for the honest thoughts. I’m not by any means an expert in policy or politics, but I’ve been in the profession for about 17 years, and I have a doctorate in education and a couple masters degrees, etc. I’ve taught at every level from K-16, and I’ve been a principal. Currently a 6th grade teacher. I’ll never go back to higher ed or to admin, but only because higher ed is too boring and administration is far too stressful.
I can’t speak for everyone, of course, but what I’m seeing is that at the building level (so pretty localized), my admin has almost always been supportive. They are just as overworked as we are, and in many cases, more so. Admin isn’t just principals either; it’s deans and coaches and Title I folks and curriculum specialists and department chairs and so on and so and so on. My understanding is that Department of Education money is spent on federal programs for things like title I and title IX and special education and free and reduced lunch programs and so on. I’m confident that there is somewhat of an administrative bloat, but at least in my building a tour isn’t happening at that level. Maybe it’s happening at the district level or someplace else, but every single person in my building is working their asses off just to keep students out of fights. Yes, we need more, but the iniquity comes more from the demographics of the surrounding community rather than from any sort of other issue. The district that I work in has about half the per-pupil funding that the richest district in Colorado has, which is only maybe 10 to 15 miles from where I teach. Funds come mostly from housing, taxes, and the housing in the community where I teach is not exactly 1st rate.
It certainly isn’t anything close to equaling 30 to 50% raise or for classroom supplies or technology. I’m actually not paid too poorly. PSLF complications, the poverty in my community, the fact that we have to physically protect the children we teach from being taken from their families by ICE, and the fact that many of the loudest voices are convinced that we are indoctrinating kids and performing gender reassignment procedures during our plans, when god knows all I want to do is get the *%#^+ copier to work, but I can’t even try because we have another lockdown drill because children bring guns into schools — these things are the issue. Closing the DoE is attacking the wrong problem — much like expelling transgender soldiers similar to comrades who I served with in Iraq — it’s creating a straw man and knocking it down, claiming victory over a boogeyman.
Two final things: 1. remember that I’m no expert, to be sure. Maybe I’m completely wrong. I might be. 2. I used to be a staunch conservative, and after seeing how we marched into villages in the name of the democracy, I was fired up. And then we killed people, and I became an antiwar activist. I calmed down until this year when I began seeing trans veterans and soldiers killing themselves and children being plucked from their homes, and I may just become radicalized again. Or maybe I’ll wait till my kids leave home. But then, it’s on.
Anywho, thanks for the thoughtfulness.
Comment by NoEyesForHart at 08/03/2025 at 20:19 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
A great idea in theory. One I would support, but implementation would be hard. A big problem as well is individual school financing, that needs to be solved before anything can really get better.
Comment by [deleted] at 08/03/2025 at 20:23 UTC
0 upvotes, 1 direct replies
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