The agency targeted for elimination by Trump also holds the capability to fulfill his major campaign pledges
The Education Department’s Office of Civil Rights has the authority to enforce new diversity regulations and can withdraw federal funding from schools that fail to comply.
TroibNews 
Donald Trump’s commitment to removing transgender athletes from women's sports, limiting classroom discussions on gender and race, and penalizing schools for antisemitism relies on an agency he intends to eliminate.
The president-elect has promised to abolish the Education Department. However, the authority to carry out some of his most significant campaign pledges resides within the agency’s Office of Civil Rights, which possesses a powerful tool that has been underutilized for decades: the ability to withdraw federal funds from schools.
This legal power — which does not necessitate congressional approval — makes the office’s investigations highly persuasive to colleges and K-12 schools that depend on federal funding. Even if the 550-person office focuses on a limited number of districts and universities, its actions would likely send shockwaves throughout institutions nationwide and affect their operations.
“A lot of conservatives would love a dismantling of the Department of Education,” said Sarah Parshall Perry, a former senior counsel in Trump’s first civil rights office. “We need to be practical about the fact that that could likely be a very, very long, drawn out process. I am more concerned with using machinery in the federal government to right the ship.”
GOP strategists and some Democratic operatives are examining the impact of transgender issues during the election and how this will shape their policy positions in 2026. By addressing these topics, Trump may highlight an early victory.
“The topic of men in women’s sports was huge [in the election], and that is something politically that he will want to deliver on quickly,” said Brendan Steinhauser, a Texas-based GOP strategist who has worked on campaigns for Sen. John Cornyn and Rep. Dan Crenshaw. “He’s going to want to show some progress.”
Trump’s previous civil rights office established a Title IX rule outlining how schools should handle sexual misconduct while strengthening students' rights who are accused of such behavior. The office also rolled back protections from the Obama era that permitted transgender students to access restrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identities.
Linda McMahon, Trump’s choice for Education Secretary, has not publicly shared her stance on transgender issues. However, the America First Policy Institute, the organization she leads, has criticized gender-affirming care for minors and school policies allowing transgender girls to join sports teams or use facilities matching their gender identity.
If confirmed, McMahon could direct the civil rights office to investigate schools implementing these policies and threaten to withdraw their funding. Losing federal money, including access to student aid and grants, poses a severe threat to educational institutions.
“To weaponize civil rights laws to harm students, which is very concerning — I don't see any reason why they wouldn't go through with that plan given how hostile they were the first time around,” said Shiwali Patel, the senior director of safe and inclusive schools at the National Women’s Law Center, a left-leaning nonprofit. “They were really using the agency against its mandate.”
Such groups are particularly apprehensive about the president-elect’s intentions to dismantle the Biden administration’s Title IX regulations, which prevent discrimination based on sex, a directive enforced by the civil rights office.
Trump is expected to swiftly issue executive orders, one of which would revoke President Joe Biden’s directive for federal agencies to enforce discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ individuals. He is also likely to instruct the Justice Department to withdraw the government’s endorsement of Biden’s Title IX rule that enhances protections for transgender students.
“The 2024 Title IX regulation is a dead man walking,” remarked Bob Eitel, who served as senior counsel to former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and is now president of the Defense of Freedom Institute, a conservative think tank. “The only open question is the means of its demise.”
However, dismantling a regulation is a time-consuming process. The Title IX rule established during the DeVos administration took several years to finalize, as did Biden’s version. The new administration could expedite its actions in various ways, such as including an amendment in a broader funding bill that prohibits the department from enforcing the Biden rule.
“The trans political issue has shown to be a political albatross — at least in the context of schools and sports — for Democrats,” Eitel noted. “It played a role in costing the Democrats seats…There may be Democrats who would support such a rider.”
As for antisemitism, Trump had been a strong proponent during his first administration for addressing this issue. He issued an executive order that barred universities from receiving federal funding if they permitted antisemitic hatred on their campuses. His Education Department also developed guidance for schools to address antisemitism.
He has criticized campus antiwar protests following Hamas’ attacks in Gaza in 2023 as antisemitic. "My first week back in the Oval Office, my administration will inform every college president that if you do not end antisemitic propaganda, they will lose their accreditation and federal taxpayer support,” Trump stated in September.
Trump has also expressed intentions to deport international students who demonstrate in favor of Palestinians.
“The big question is whether the incoming Trump administration will move to deny federal funds from one or more of the colleges that tolerate a hostile environment for Jewish students,” noted Kenneth Marcus, a former assistant Education Secretary for civil rights under Trump and founder of the Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law.
Regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion, Trump has pledged to withdraw federal funds from schools that teach about race and gender identity. This could be enforced through Title VI, a federal law prohibiting discrimination based on ancestry, ethnic characteristics, or national origin. Compliance with this law is mandatory for all schools receiving federal funding.
A new regulation under Title VI, enforced through the civil rights office, would impact school diversity, equity, and inclusion programs as well as controversial education surrounding race and gender. Eitel suggested that the same law used to combat antisemitism on campuses could also be employed against diversity policies “because they are racially discriminatory.”
Officials could additionally leverage the civil rights office to uphold the Supreme Court decision that limits the role of race in the admissions process.
The prior Trump administration took measures to prevent the consideration of race in admissions. The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Yale University following a two-year investigation into the Ivy League institution's admissions practices. This action represented the administration's most significant challenge to the use of race in university admissions — a stance Trump has pledged to maintain.
Rohan Mehta contributed to this report for TROIB News
The president-elect has promised to abolish the Education Department. However, the authority to carry out some of his most significant campaign pledges resides within the agency’s Office of Civil Rights, which possesses a powerful tool that has been underutilized for decades: the ability to withdraw federal funds from schools.
This legal power — which does not necessitate congressional approval — makes the office’s investigations highly persuasive to colleges and K-12 schools that depend on federal funding. Even if the 550-person office focuses on a limited number of districts and universities, its actions would likely send shockwaves throughout institutions nationwide and affect their operations.
“A lot of conservatives would love a dismantling of the Department of Education,” said Sarah Parshall Perry, a former senior counsel in Trump’s first civil rights office. “We need to be practical about the fact that that could likely be a very, very long, drawn out process. I am more concerned with using machinery in the federal government to right the ship.”
GOP strategists and some Democratic operatives are examining the impact of transgender issues during the election and how this will shape their policy positions in 2026. By addressing these topics, Trump may highlight an early victory.
“The topic of men in women’s sports was huge [in the election], and that is something politically that he will want to deliver on quickly,” said Brendan Steinhauser, a Texas-based GOP strategist who has worked on campaigns for Sen. John Cornyn and Rep. Dan Crenshaw. “He’s going to want to show some progress.”
Trump’s previous civil rights office established a Title IX rule outlining how schools should handle sexual misconduct while strengthening students' rights who are accused of such behavior. The office also rolled back protections from the Obama era that permitted transgender students to access restrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identities.
Linda McMahon, Trump’s choice for Education Secretary, has not publicly shared her stance on transgender issues. However, the America First Policy Institute, the organization she leads, has criticized gender-affirming care for minors and school policies allowing transgender girls to join sports teams or use facilities matching their gender identity.
If confirmed, McMahon could direct the civil rights office to investigate schools implementing these policies and threaten to withdraw their funding. Losing federal money, including access to student aid and grants, poses a severe threat to educational institutions.
“To weaponize civil rights laws to harm students, which is very concerning — I don't see any reason why they wouldn't go through with that plan given how hostile they were the first time around,” said Shiwali Patel, the senior director of safe and inclusive schools at the National Women’s Law Center, a left-leaning nonprofit. “They were really using the agency against its mandate.”
Such groups are particularly apprehensive about the president-elect’s intentions to dismantle the Biden administration’s Title IX regulations, which prevent discrimination based on sex, a directive enforced by the civil rights office.
Trump is expected to swiftly issue executive orders, one of which would revoke President Joe Biden’s directive for federal agencies to enforce discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ individuals. He is also likely to instruct the Justice Department to withdraw the government’s endorsement of Biden’s Title IX rule that enhances protections for transgender students.
“The 2024 Title IX regulation is a dead man walking,” remarked Bob Eitel, who served as senior counsel to former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and is now president of the Defense of Freedom Institute, a conservative think tank. “The only open question is the means of its demise.”
However, dismantling a regulation is a time-consuming process. The Title IX rule established during the DeVos administration took several years to finalize, as did Biden’s version. The new administration could expedite its actions in various ways, such as including an amendment in a broader funding bill that prohibits the department from enforcing the Biden rule.
“The trans political issue has shown to be a political albatross — at least in the context of schools and sports — for Democrats,” Eitel noted. “It played a role in costing the Democrats seats…There may be Democrats who would support such a rider.”
As for antisemitism, Trump had been a strong proponent during his first administration for addressing this issue. He issued an executive order that barred universities from receiving federal funding if they permitted antisemitic hatred on their campuses. His Education Department also developed guidance for schools to address antisemitism.
He has criticized campus antiwar protests following Hamas’ attacks in Gaza in 2023 as antisemitic. "My first week back in the Oval Office, my administration will inform every college president that if you do not end antisemitic propaganda, they will lose their accreditation and federal taxpayer support,” Trump stated in September.
Trump has also expressed intentions to deport international students who demonstrate in favor of Palestinians.
“The big question is whether the incoming Trump administration will move to deny federal funds from one or more of the colleges that tolerate a hostile environment for Jewish students,” noted Kenneth Marcus, a former assistant Education Secretary for civil rights under Trump and founder of the Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law.
Regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion, Trump has pledged to withdraw federal funds from schools that teach about race and gender identity. This could be enforced through Title VI, a federal law prohibiting discrimination based on ancestry, ethnic characteristics, or national origin. Compliance with this law is mandatory for all schools receiving federal funding.
A new regulation under Title VI, enforced through the civil rights office, would impact school diversity, equity, and inclusion programs as well as controversial education surrounding race and gender. Eitel suggested that the same law used to combat antisemitism on campuses could also be employed against diversity policies “because they are racially discriminatory.”
Officials could additionally leverage the civil rights office to uphold the Supreme Court decision that limits the role of race in the admissions process.
The prior Trump administration took measures to prevent the consideration of race in admissions. The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Yale University following a two-year investigation into the Ivy League institution's admissions practices. This action represented the administration's most significant challenge to the use of race in university admissions — a stance Trump has pledged to maintain.
Rohan Mehta contributed to this report for TROIB News
