The U.S. Department of Education is once again attempting to dismantle the Equity Assistance Center (EAC) program nationwide, a move that comes after previous unsuccessful efforts under the Trump administration and despite a court order that temporarily preserved the program’s operations in at least one region. This latest initiative, detailed in a notice posted in the Federal Register on June 25, also includes consideration of transferring related services to the U.S. Department of Justice, signaling a significant potential shift in how the federal government addresses issues of educational equity and desegregation.
Established under Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, originally as Desegregation Assistance Centers, the EACs were designed to provide crucial technical assistance and training to schools, districts, and school boards. Their mandate was to address the complex educational challenges arising from school desegregation, including issues such as harassment, bullying, and prejudice. Beyond direct intervention, the centers also play a vital role in helping educational institutions interpret data to identify and rectify disparities, often through professional development programs for educators. Currently, four such centers operate across the United States.
The June proposal explicitly outlines the intention to eliminate the EAC program. In its notice, the Education Department stated that while the program was initially authorized to meet a significant need for desegregation-related support among educational bodies, the department now believes "there is not a need for the program to operate in the same regionally distributed way that the regulations require." The department suggests an opportunity exists to "explore other means of service delivery that address these varied needs in a more flexible manner."
A History of Contention: Past Efforts to Dissolve the EAC Program
This latest attempt to shutter the EACs is not an isolated incident. The program, which received approximately $7 million in Fiscal Year 2024 funding, has faced repeated challenges from the Trump administration. Since President Trump’s initial term, his administration consistently sought to eliminate or significantly curtail funding for these centers, proposing their closure in budget requests for Fiscal Years 2026 and 2027.
These efforts culminated in the administration’s decision to close all four EACs nationwide on February 13, 2025. This action, however, did not go unchallenged. A lawsuit filed by the NAACP aimed to reverse these rollbacks, and as of a June 29 update, the case was undergoing a settlement agreement process. This was not the sole legal challenge. The Southern Education Foundation, which manages the EAC program in the Southern region, also filed a lawsuit contesting the administration’s decision. In a significant development, the Education Department temporarily reinstated the Southern Education Foundation’s grant after a court order, a move that ultimately led to the foundation dropping its lawsuit.
Shifting Responsibilities: Potential Transfer to the Department of Justice
Adding another layer to this evolving landscape, the Education Department’s June proposal contemplates reallocating EACs’ functions to the Department of Justice. This consideration is framed within the context of an existing interagency agreement between the two departments. In a related development last month, the Education Department transferred many of its civil rights enforcement operations to the Justice Department as part of this broader agreement.
The Education Department asserts that this proposed rescission of the EAC program and potential reallocation of services will offer "greater flexibility to both departments to determine the best approaches to service delivery that will improve the support provided to eligible recipients and improve students’ access to a high-quality education."
However, this proposed shift occurs against a backdrop of actions by the Justice Department under the second Trump administration that have involved lifting multiple desegregation orders in states such as Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida. In one notable instance concerning the Plaquemines Parish School Board in Louisiana, the Justice Department stated that lifting the order "righted a historical wrong, freeing the local school district of federal oversight" and allowing the board to cease dedicating resources to an integration issue deemed concluded generations prior.
The Enduring Reality of School Segregation
The administration’s efforts to dismantle civil rights infrastructure, including the EAC program, come at a time when numerous studies highlight a concerning trend of increasing segregation in U.S. schools. A 2024 report from researchers at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and the University of Southern California indicated that racial and economic segregation in large school districts has steadily grown over the past three decades. This rise in segregation, the researchers suggest, may be partly attributable to policies that prioritize school choice over integration efforts.
The Stanford/USC report, which analyzed U.S. public school data dating back to 1967, found that segregation between White and Black students has increased by 64% since 1988 in the 100 largest school districts. Similarly, segregation based on economic status has risen by approximately 50% since 1991.
Further evidence comes from a report by Brown’s Promise and The Segregation Tracking Project, utilizing data from the 2023-2024 school year. This report identified states with the most racially segregated schools. The co-founder of Brown’s Promise, Ary Amerikaner, stated, "This data clearly maps the nation’s school segregation problem and represents both a moment of reckoning and a window of opportunity. Segregated schools are the result of deliberate policy decisions."
Program Performance and Criticisms
Despite the Education Department’s assertion of declining need, data from Fiscal Year 2022 indicates that EACs provided targeted and intensive assistance to a significant number of educational entities: 24 state education agencies, 222 districts, and 145 schools across 46 states and territories. During that same fiscal period, the program successfully fulfilled 96% of the requests for assistance it received.
The department, however, juxtaposes these figures with the program’s origins, noting that the 2022 numbers suggest a potentially lower demand compared to 1969, when the centers reportedly received 6,223 requests for help. This comparison is viewed critically by those who oppose the program’s closure.
Kathleen Thorius, a critic of the proposal, argued in public comments that the current demand metrics do not signify a lack of need. Instead, she contended, they demonstrate "national reach, substantial demand, and functioning capacity."
Public Comment and Future Uncertainty
The public comment period for the Education Department’s proposed rule to close the Equity Assistance Centers concluded on July 27. The outcome of this period, along with the ongoing considerations regarding the transfer of services to the Department of Justice, will determine the future of these long-standing institutions dedicated to fostering educational equity and addressing the lingering effects of segregation in American schools. The decision carries significant implications for the nation’s commitment to ensuring all students have access to a high-quality, equitable education, especially as evidence points to a growing challenge of school segregation across the country. The debate over the EAC program underscores a broader national conversation about the role of federal intervention in civil rights enforcement and the evolving strategies for achieving educational justice.
