The U.S. Department of Education has been granted permission to proceed with significant staff reductions, impacting almost half of its civil rights enforcement team. This green light comes after a federal appeals court overturned the final legal block preventing these layoffs. A three-judge panel from the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston confirmed Monday that the department can let go of more than 260 employees from its crucial Office for Civil Rights (OCR). This ruling follows a July Supreme Court decision in New York v. McMahon, which had already paved the way for broader cuts across the Education Department.
Earlier, U.S. District Court Judge Myong Joun had temporarily halted these layoffs in two separate cases, McMahon and Victim Rights Law Center v. U.S. Department of Education. Judge Joun emphasized the ‘unique harms’ students would face if the OCR experienced such substantial staff cuts. His initial decision had even compelled the department to rehire 85 employees in September, with intentions to bring back all 264 by November. However, the appeals court ultimately sided with the Trump administration. They concluded there were no significant legal differences between the OCR-specific layoffs and the broader departmental cuts previously approved by the Supreme Court. Judges Lara Montecalvo and Julie Rikelman deemed these distinctions ‘insufficiently material’ to warrant a different ruling, with Judge Seth Aframe offering a separate concurring opinion.
The ruling has drawn sharp criticism from organizations like Public Justice, which represents the plaintiffs in the Victim Rights Law Center case. Senior Attorney Sean Ouellette expressed deep concern, stating that the decision ‘removes an important check’ against the government’s perceived intention to ‘gut the Office of Civil Rights.’ He pointed out, however, that the court did acknowledge OCR’s fundamental congressional mandate to uphold civil rights laws and guarantee equitable access to education.
Advocacy groups are vociferously highlighting the potential fallout: without sufficient OCR staff, countless students—including survivors of sexual assault and children with unresolved civil rights complaints—will be left without crucial support. A spokesperson for the Victim Rights Law Center characterized the layoffs as an ‘ill-conceived political move,’ underscoring that ‘OCR exists to safeguard students’ educational access. Without adequate staffing, that is impossible.’
As of now, the Education Department has not disclosed its next steps following this decision. The future remains uncertain for those employees who had already rejoined the workforce or were scheduled to return this month.
Prior to these cuts, the OCR boasted approximately 560 staff members spread across 12 regional offices. In 2023, this team managed a staggering caseload of over 19,000 complaints, a figure that had doubled since 2021. Compounding the issue, seven regional offices have already been permanently shut down.
Critics are warning that this significant downsizing will severely compromise OCR’s capacity to manage its ever-growing workload. Furthermore, they fear it will hinder the agency’s ability to effectively oversee the Trump administration’s policy directives, particularly those concerning transgender student rights and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.