WASHINGTON — As Republican-led states focused on restricting school history education and prohibiting transgender athletes from participating in sports, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona emphasized his commitment to essential issues: increasing the number of social workers in schools, enhancing summer school programs, and developing a robust teacher pipeline.
In a recent interview during his final days in office, Cardona expressed a desire to steer clear of the contentious battles instigated by Republican governors, who he believes aim to elevate their own profiles. “I’m not going to get distracted by culture wars,” Cardona stated, dismissing the discourse as nonsensical. “It’s nonsense, and I think the people that spew it, they make a fool of themselves. I don’t need to help them.”
Cardona hopes to be remembered for making substantial contributions rather than seeking sensationalism. He played a role in reopening schools after the COVID-19 pandemic and directed a significant federal aid boost to schools across America. Additionally, his administration facilitated student loan cancellations for over 5 million individuals.
However, his tenure was also marked by political controversy. Critics, including conservatives and education specialists, have contended that the reopening of schools during the pandemic was handled too slowly, leading to ongoing educational deficits and troubling mental health trends among youth. Even post-pandemic, education remained a battleground with conservatives contesting what they viewed as “wokeness” being taught in schools. Consequently, many Republican states enacted laws limiting educational content regarding race and sexual orientation and instituted bans on transgender participation in school sports.
In response, Cardona sought to counter these trends as best he could. His Department of Education investigated civil rights violations linked to discrimination and introduced a significant regulation to extend Title IX protections to LGBTQ+ students. Nonetheless, he faced substantial limitations regarding his authority. A federal judge ultimately overturned the Title IX rule, and many Republican states disregarded his calls for enhanced diversity in the educational sector.
Reflecting on these challenges, Cardona remarked, “We saw in this country what I think is a step backwards in terms of student rights. The reality is, the federal government has a limited role in state policy.”
At 49, Cardona’s ascent in education has been rapid. Growing up as the son of Puerto Ricans, he dedicated many years as a fourth-grade teacher, principal, and district administrator before taking on the role of Connecticut’s education leader. Biden’s decision to appoint someone with teaching experience was a stark contrast to Trump’s initial education secretary, Betsy DeVos, who favored pro-school-choice policies.
Initially, Cardona attempted to communicate directly with Republican governors in an effort to align their approaches to education issues. He exchanged letters with Florida’s and Texas’s governors regarding mask mandates and COVID-19 testing policies. However, he realized that engaging in this back-and-forth dialogue was primarily providing them a platform to garner attention ahead of the 2024 presidential election. Cardona concluded that it wouldn’t be an effective use of his time to respond to leaders intent on opposing Biden policy initiatives to further their political ambitions.
In the political arena, disputes extended to the judiciary, where Republican states successfully challenged several of Biden’s prominent education initiatives, such as broad-based student loan forgiveness and a more accommodating student loan repayment system. Additional proposals, such as the push for free community college, faltered due to lack of Congressional backing.
Despite these setbacks, Cardona believes there were many accomplishments during his tenure. Under Biden, there was a notable increase in the maximum Pell Grant available for low-income students, and over one million public sector employees benefited from student loan cancellations following a revamp of a problematic program. New legislation allowed schools to hire around 16,000 mental health professionals.
“What we did is going to have a tremendous impact in our schools,” Cardona asserted. “When you have more school social workers, psychologists, more reading teachers, more after-school programs, and more summer programs than in the history of our country, there are 50 million kids out there that are going to benefit from that.”
Cardona downplayed a significant low point of his administration concerning a flawed overhaul of the notoriously complex federal financial aid application, known as FAFSA. Congress had mandated simplification of the form, but several issues led to delays in financial aid decisions, creating a crisis atmosphere and concerns that the frustration might hinder college enrollment. Cardona, however, countered this narrative by referencing new data indicating an increase in college freshmen enrollment this fall.
In his farewell address, Cardona urged his colleagues not to lose hope, even amid uncertainty about potential policy rollbacks or budget cuts by the incoming administration. He expressed confidence in the future, proclaiming, “because I never, ever bet against our nation’s teachers and students.”
He emphasized the critical role they would play in shaping public education’s future, stating, “There’s no one education secretary or president that does that, and no one leader can break our resolve.”
