ICYMI: Warren, Colleagues Warn Trump’s Dismantling of Special Education Services Deprives Children with Disabilities of “Equal Education”

ICYMI: Warren, Colleagues Warn Trump's Dismantling of Special Education Services Deprives Children with Disabilities of "Equal Education"

Cuts to Education Department's Office of Special Education may violate the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

"We must do more, not less, to support children with disabilities and their families…We demand you reverse the firing of the staff at these critical offices"

Text of Letter (PDF)

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Senate colleagues called out the Trump Administration's efforts to dismantle U.S. special education with its decision to illegally fire the Department of Education workers who provide education services and resources for people with disabilities and their families. In a letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon and Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought, the Senators stressed that firing nearly all of the employees of the Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) will leave the Administration unable to meet its legal obligation to ensure access to a quality education for people with disabilities.

"We call on you to immediately end your illegal effort to fire these workers and ensure the offices are restored so that the staff can effectively implement statutorily required responsibilities assigned to the Secretary of Education," said the lawmakers.

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), every student in America is legally entitled to a free, appropriate public education.

"By effectively closing these offices, you have sent a clear message: the Trump Administration does not believe that children with disabilities deserve an equal education," said the senators.

The senators emphasized the Administration's legal obligation to carry out education programs for Americans with disabilities, noting that the Administration has previously fired staff that oversee the implementation of IDEA and canceled investments in improving accessibility for students.

"We have already heard from families across the country who are fearful of losing services given the Department's actions. We demand you reverse the firing of the staff at these critical offices," the senators concluded.

Senator Warren was joined in sending the letter by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.).

As part of her Save Our Schools campaign, Senator Warren has stood up to the Trump administration's attacks on the American education system:

• On October 15, 2025, Senator Warren and Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) led 70 members of Congress in a letter calling on the Trump administration to address the ongoing and unprecedented wave of student loan delinquencies and defaults, which threatens the financial stability of millions of people and could have disastrous effects on the American economy.

• On September 19, 2025, following a push by Senator Warren and nine other senators, the Acting Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Education agreed to open an investigation into DOGE's infiltration of internal systems, including the scope of its access to sensitive student loan borrower information and its impact on borrowers' rights and privacy.

• On August 26, 2025, Senator Warren led colleagues in sending a follow-up letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon condemning the Department of Education for deliberately hiding the "Submit a Complaint" button on the Office of Federal Student Aid's website, firing employees responsible for providing customer service to borrowers and families, and misleading Congress about the scope of these firings.

• On August 7, 2025, Senator Warren publicly released Secretary of Education Linda McMahon's response to the senator's 60+ questions and pressed for additional information. Senator Warren announced that she would refer certain matters where the Department has proved uncooperative to the Government Accountability Office and the Education Department's Inspector General.

• On July 24, 2025, Senator Elizabeth Warren, in a forum held by Senator Mazie Hirono, "Robbing Our Students' Futures: The Indefensible Attacks on Public Education," highlighted the consequences of President Donald Trump and Secretary Linda McMahon's cuts to the Department of Education for students with disabilities and their families.

• On July 17, 2025, Senator Warren released a 23-page report highlighting warnings from 11 major national education and civil rights organizations on the impact of the Trump administration's dismantling of the Department of Education and slashing support to millions of American students, primary and secondary school teachers, administrators, parents, and student loan borrowers.

• On July 14, 2025, Senator Warren joined 31 of her colleagues in demanding that Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought and Education Secretary Linda McMahon immediately release the nearly $7 billion in funding for K-12 schools and adult literacy programs across America that is currently being illegally withheld by the Trump administration.

• On June 10, 2025, Senator Warren met with Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and delivered over 1,000 letters from people in all 50 states who are worried about the Secretary's efforts to dismantle the Department of Education.

• On April 2, 2025, Senator Warren launched the Save Our Schools campaign to fight back against the Trump administration's efforts to gut the Department of Education.

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