Late yesterday, the U. S. Senate voted to confirm Linda McMahon as the next Secretary of Education. The vote was 51-45 along party lines with two members of each party absent. Ms. McMahon was immediately sworn in as Secretary and delivered remarks about her vision which she calls “Our Department’s Final Mission.” 

Secretary McMahon states that her vision for the U.S. Department of Education (Department) is aligned with the President’s “to send education back to the states” and “to empower parents.” She notes that the American people, through the president whom they have elected, tasked her with the “elimination of bureaucratic bloat here at the Department of Education” and that the Department “will partner with Congress and other federal agencies to determine the best path forward to fulfill the expectations of the President and the American people.”  

She closes out her comments by sharing her three convictions: 

1. Parents are the primary decision makers in their children’s education.  

2. Taxpayer-funded education should refocus on meaningful learning in math, reading, science, and history—not divisive DEI programs and gender ideology.  

3. Postsecondary education should be a path to a well-paying career aligned with workforce needs. 

The view on postsecondary education is an opportunity for community colleges to work with Secretary McMahon and this administration on the promise of delivering higher education aligned with workforce needs. In particular, last fall she authored an opinion piece calling for Congress to pass the Bipartisan Workforce Pell Act. 

However, predicting exactly how the promised dramatic changes may affect community colleges is not easy. Community colleges interact with the federal government in two primary ways: receiving federal funds through a variety of avenues and meeting regulatory requirements to report student outcomes, campus data, and ensure they’re eligible for Federal Student Aid. How these two major areas may change and what that impact will be for community colleges may vary greatly depending on the approach Congress and the Administration decide to take. 

The best way we can influence what will happen next to strengthen community colleges’ service to their students, communities, and regional economies is to stay engaged in the conversation about proposed shifts. 

 Here is a list of actions all community colleges should regularly be engaged in: 

• Updating your Member of Congress about successes on campus made possible by federal funding.  
• Share challenges with your elected officials caused by Congressional or Administrative action (or inaction). 
• Invite Members of Congress to campus for a tour and/or to participate in an event 
• Catalog all federal funding sources to understand and be able to share the full impact of all types of federal funding on your campus.  
• Stay informed about proposed changes in regulatory actions and respond to calls for public comments when available. 
• Sign up for ACCT’s Latest Action in Washington (LAW) Update emails and register for LAW Live monthly webinars. 

Now is the time to prepare for a marathon of conversations about what the role of the federal government will be in higher education for future generations. Interaction with Congress will be vital as it decides funding levels for programs serving our students and our campuses, and additionally, whether programs are changed, relocated to other federal agencies or eliminated entirely. Others, such as President Trump’s campaign trail promise to reform accreditation, will happen at the Department level. Either way, in order to ensure the best possible outcome for our students and colleges, we must actively participate in the process and let all federal stakeholders know the impact their actions could have on our communities. 

Carrie Warick-Smith is the Vice President-Public Policy at ACCT

For more background on Secretary McMahon and President Trump's campaign trail promises, please see the Winter 2025 Trustee Quarterly Advocacy column.

Photo Credit: Linda McMahon sworn in by Jacqueline Clay via U. S. Department of Education Office of Communications and Outreach.