Why this Iowa special ed teacher is worried for her students as the DOE is dismantled

President Trump signed an executive order Thursday, calling for the dismantling of the Department of Education. That’s going to take away from all of Iowa’s 325 school districts—a total of $800 million lost. It includes money for Title I programs that help districts with a high percentage of kids from low income families, as well as grants that provide money to teach students with disabilities.

“I became a special education teacher because I wanted to ensure access for all students to education,” Des Moines special education teacher Emma Seibert said. “That’s been my favorite part of my job—helping my students access their grade level material in their classrooms.”

“It has been so fulfilling and it makes me feel like I’m really making a difference.”

Surrounded by 30,000 students, Emma’s been a special education teacher in Iowa’s largest public school district for the last seven years.

Her job in Des Moines Public Schools may have just become more challenging.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to dismantle the US Department of Education (DOE), while urging Congress to move forward to abolish it altogether.

Iowa State Education Association President Joshua Brown said that statewide, more than $800 million is given to 325 school districts each year for “programs helping students achieve, impacting our state’s economy and our ability to grow the next generation of leaders.”

“The abolition of programs in the US Department of Education will directly impact families in every community in Iowa, threatening our children’s educational opportunities and the stability of our local economies,” Brown said.

National Education Association President Becky Pringle added that “it would mean fewer resources for our most vulnerable students, larger class sizes, fewer special education services for students with disabilities, and less civil rights protections.”

One of the main functions of the DOE is providing schools with funding and resources to support students with disabilities through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): This includes oversight of IEPs (Individual Education Programs) and 504 plans, both of which ensure students with special needs can get an education.

The department also has its own office of civil rights to ensure equal access to education.

How does the DOE help students like Emma’s?

Emma said IEPs are used to help kids who learn differently to receive the same level of education as their peers. These learning needs are broad and affect a lot of kids. They’re for students with autism, emotional disturbances, hearing impairments, blindness, ADHD, learning disabilities like dyslexia, speech impairment, intellectual disabilities like Down syndrome, and more.

Emma said IDEA funding even provides tools for some kids to communicate. Without those, she said, “My students would be left voiceless.”

Some students with disabilities use devices as a way to communicate what they’re learning and how they’re developing skills through computer technology. “It could be answering questions or it could be having conversations with peers at lunch and recess,” she explained. “It’s important for them to interact—it’s how they can express what they need, what they want, or what they feel—how they can talk with their friends and be part of the school community.”

Emma’s also concerned about staff cuts. “My job is hard already”, she said. “Fewer teachers means larger class sizes and less individualized attention that a lot of my students have in their plans.”

“I can’t imagine having more students because there are fewer teachers to teach.”

And if parents just think cuts would only affect kids with IEPs, she said to think again. “Parents might be thinking this isn’t really a big deal, but it’s a broader effect than just that group of kids.”

“If you have an IEP, you’re not in a separate room or a separate building—that’s not how it is anymore,” Emma said. “They’re in general education classrooms.”

Emma said if the child has a behavior issue in the classroom, it could be disruptive to everyone else. “It’s hard to teach—it’s hard to get what you need to get done.”

Plus, staff is already spread thin and will have to help in responding to everything happening in school. “It’s all hands on deck these days,” said Emma. “It’s just going to trickle and affect the entire school community.”

Who was at the signing in the Oval Office?

While Emma worries about what is to come for her and her students, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds was one of several Republican governors at the White House to join Trump as he signed the executive order.

“We’re going to eliminate it, and everybody knows it’s right,” the president said of the department at the White House Thursday. He added, “We’re not doing well with the world of education in this country, and we haven’t for a long time.” It is a critique that does not stand up to fact checks.

Gov. Reynolds praised Trump’s action, posting on X that “Education decisions should be made by those who know students best—parents, teachers, and local communities.”

Read More: Reynolds’ voucher program will cost Iowa taxpayers over $200 million in year two

Emma said that doesn’t bode well for her schools. “Especially in a state like Iowa, where we don’t have the support from our government when it comes to funding public schools.”

Iowa’s Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart had sharp words for the governor’s actions. “If Kim Reynolds hasn’t made her disdain for Iowa’s public schools clear enough through her voucher scam that gives taxpayer money to private schools for wealthy families, she made it pretty clear today by flying all the way to Washington, DC to watch Donald Trump sign an executive order that will gut the Department of Education.”

She added that it put rural schools and special education programs at risk. “It’s time to replace Kim Reynolds in favor of a governor who believes every child deserves equal access to quality education and supports our public schools.”

“This is a moment voters will remember in 2026.”