New Teacher Survey: Overwhelming Opposition to Dismantling Department of Education and Strong Support for Federal READ Act

Educators for Excellence releases new data from a national survey of more than 2,000 K-12 public school teachers and calls for federal action to stop agency transfers and pass the READ Act.

NEW YORK, NY—Ahead of Thursday’s Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee markup, Educators for Excellence (E4E) today released new survey data alongside two letters urging the Committee to protect the U.S. Department of Education’s core functions and pass the Reading Excellence and Achievement for Development (READ) Act.

The data, drawn from a national E4E survey of more than 2,000 K-12 public school teachers, to be published this fall, shows near-unanimous support among educators for the federal government’s role in serving the students furthest from opportunity. The survey finds almost no appetite for scaling it back:

• 89% of teachers said the federal government has an obligation to support students with disabilities.
• 88% said the federal government has an obligation to support students experiencing homelessness.
• 87% said the federal government has an obligation to support students from low-income households.
• Just 11% of teachers support plans to close or reduce the size and scope of the U.S. Department of Education.

Additionally, survey data shows near-unanimous support from teachers for evidence-based, high-quality instructional materials, aligned with what the READ Act is designed to deliver: 

• 94% said all teachers should use evidence-based, high-quality instructional materials.
• 93% said those materials should be culturally responsive and reflect diverse perspectives.

On behalf of its nearly 40,000 teacher member base, E4E sent two letters to Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The first urges support for S. 5046, legislation that would prohibit the Department of Education from transferring core offices, including those serving students with disabilities, to other federal agencies. The second urges passage of the READ Act, which would strengthen evidence-based literacy instruction nationwide, ensure that parents are informed about students’ progress, and end the use of disproven approaches such as three-cueing.

“Teachers are the ones showing up for these students every day, and their voice belongs in this conversation,” said Evan Stone, co-founder and CEO of E4E. “Our members are asking the Senate HELP Committee to stop the transfer of Department of Education programs to agencies that have never run them and to give every student a teacher equipped with the tools and training the READ Act provides.”

Teachers whose voices are featured in the letters include:

Luisa Sparrow, 2025 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year, who teaches students with intellectual disabilities: “Only fifty years ago, students like mine were frequently denied the opportunity to attend school because people didn’t expect them to be able to learn. That changed because someone took responsibility for protecting their right to education.”

Susan Providence, a special education teacher at Capitol Hill Magnet in St. Paul, Minnesota: “We tend to equate health with treating illness. My students are not sick. They learn differently. Reassigning educational oversight to the Department of Health and Human Services treats learning differences as medical conditions, and that harms the students it’s meant to help.”

Teresa Ranieri, a NYC public school literacy coach with more than thirty years in education: “Excellent teachers deserve excellent tools, and every child deserves reading instruction grounded in the best available research.”

Cedric Jacobson, a Boston high school science teacher: “Gaps in foundational literacy never got closed, and those gaps limit what my students can show me and what colleges will see.”

E4E’s letters are available at the following links:

Support for the READ Act
Support for S. 5046

About Educators for Excellence

Educators for Excellence (E4E) is a national network of nearly 40,000 classroom teachers dedicated to building a high-quality, diverse teaching profession so every student can thrive. Learn more at e4e.org.