Last month, the Trump Administration dismissed all 13 members of a key federal education research board who had been appointed by Biden. This action has been strongly criticized by former members, especially given the Administration’s ongoing efforts to dismantle the Department of Education.
The dismissals, which occurred on May 23, affected the National Board for Education Sciences (NBES). Congress established this board in 2002 to advise the Department of Education’s research division, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES). The NBES, comprising researchers, educators, and civic leaders, was responsible for guiding the Department’s $900 million research agenda. This included approving priorities, overseeing peer-reviewed grants, and providing advice on how to reduce achievement gaps related to race, income, and disability. The future of this work is uncertain, as the current Administration has significantly reduced funding for it.
These dismissals are the latest setback for the board in maintaining its mandated role. During much of Donald Trump’s first term as President, he did not appoint enough members to the 15-member NBES. As a result, the board did not hold any meetings during those four years, according to its website.
Madi Biedermann, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Communications under Education Secretary Linda McMahon, stated to TIME, “We can confirm that the Department fired thirteen Biden appointees to the National Board for Education Sciences on May 23.” She added, “One of the core duties of a board member is to ensure that activities are objective, nonideological, and free of partisan influence—they failed.”
Biedermann cited poor student performance, excessive spending on research contracts, and the alleged politicization of federal research as reasons for the dismissals. She stated that new appointees would be announced to “drive forward President Trump and Secretary McMahon’s vision” for education reform, which prioritizes decentralization and a reduced role for the federal government.
Biedermann said, “As reflected in the dismal results of the recent Nation’s Report Card, these board members stood by as student outcomes declined nationwide, oversaw research contracts that took gross advantage of the American taxpayer without delivering improvements in teaching and learning, and allowed partisan ideologies to seep into taxpayer-funded research and development.”
However, former board members and education advocates argue that the dismissals are part of a larger political effort to discredit scientific research and weaken protections for vulnerable students.
Shaun Harper, a professor at the University of Southern California and one of those dismissed, stated that he was not surprised by the Trump Administration’s decision but disagreed with their characterization of the board’s work. “We committed to spending four years in the unpaid role because we all want the best for our democracy,” he wrote. “We approached our work as experts, not as politically-polarizing activists who somehow sought to advance anti-American agendas.”
He added, “Without knowing or even asking what this entailed, it is possible that the Trump Administration presumed this to be a hotbed of DEI activities that privileged wokeness over merit. I never participated in nor witnessed this. There is no evidence of such wrongdoing.”
The Trump Administration has been open about its disapproval of the Department of Education. Trump has repeatedly pledged to abolish the agency, although a recent federal court ruling temporarily blocked his executive order aimed at doing so. Judge Myong J. Joun of the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts issued a preliminary injunction ordering the reinstatement of thousands of department employees who had been fired as part of the Administration’s downsizing efforts.
In testimony before Congress, Education Secretary McMahon acknowledged that as many as three-fourths of the approximately 2,000 staff members fired at the agency were dismissed under restructuring efforts led by Elon Musk, who previously headed the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
The NBES dismissals occur amid growing concerns about the future of the Institute of Education Sciences itself. According to department employees and internal emails reviewed by TIME, many IES contracts were canceled within the first two months of Trump’s second term. These cancellations include long-term studies on math interventions, data collection on homeschooling, and surveys related to private education and career training. One canceled program had already been implemented in classrooms across multiple states.
Founded under President George W. Bush as part of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, the IES and its advisory board were established to bring scientific rigor to the field of education. The NBES, in particular, was tasked with ensuring that federal education research is objective, equitable, and informed by both practitioners and scientists.
Harper warned of the long-term consequences of terminating board members without replacements: “Consequently, students with disabilities will be even more underserved. Inequities between rich and poor, as well as white and racially diverse learners, will widen. Congress and educational leaders will have even less access to trustworthy, high-quality research on what works.”
“`
