Por Renan Filho · 2026-10-20**Lead**
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon kicked off a four-state tour this week, traveling to Ohio, Texas, Florida, and Arizona with a clear message: the federal government has overstayed its welcome in the classroom. Speaking at a town hall in Columbus, Ohio, on Monday, McMahon framed the initiative as a push to restore power to parents, local school boards, and state education officials — a move she described as putting local leaders and families “back into the driver’s seat” of their children’s education. The tour, which runs through the end of the month, is the most visible sign yet of the Trump administration’s ongoing effort to shrink the Department of Education’s footprint and accelerate a broader conservative agenda of decentralization.
**Contexto**
McMahon’s tour comes at a critical juncture for American education policy. Since returning to office in January 2025, President Donald Trump has made school choice, parental rights, and the dismantling of federal oversight central pillars of his domestic agenda. In March, Trump signed an executive order directing McMahon to begin the process of dismantling the Department of Education, a campaign promise that has drawn fierce opposition from teachers’ unions and Democratic lawmakers. While full abolition requires an act of Congress, the administration has moved aggressively to reduce the department’s staff and shift grant programs to block grants managed by states.
The four-state itinerary is no accident. Ohio, Texas, Florida, and Arizona are all states where Republican governors have championed school voucher programs and curriculum transparency laws. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, a Republican, has expanded the state’s EdChoice scholarship program, while Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed the “Parental Rights in Education” bill in 2022, which critics dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” law. Texas has been a battleground over library book content and critical race theory, and Arizona enacted the nation’s most expansive universal school voucher program in 2022. By visiting these states, McMahon is signaling alignment with local conservative education trends and offering federal backing for state-level initiatives.
During the Columbus stop, McMahon met with a panel of parents, teachers, and school board members. According to a Department of Education press release, the discussion centered on “the burdens of federal mandates, the need for curriculum transparency, and the importance of empowering families to make the best educational choices for their children.” No specific policy proposals were announced, but aides indicated that the feedback collected during the tour would inform future regulatory changes and budget requests.
**Analise**
The tour represents more than a listening exercise; it is a deliberate political and ideological maneuver. By elevating local control as the guiding principle of federal education policy, McMahon is attempting to reframe the national debate around schooling. For decades, the federal role in education has expanded through laws like the Every Student Succeeds Act and Title I funding for low-income schools. Conservatives have long argued that this centralization has led to bureaucratic inefficiency and a one-size-fits-all approach that ignores community values. McMahon’s tour is an effort to give that critique a human face — featuring parents who feel unheard and local leaders who feel constrained by Washington.
However, critics warn that reducing federal oversight could widen existing inequities. The Department of Education enforces civil rights laws related to race, gender, and disability in schools. Without federal enforcement, advocates argue, vulnerable students could lose protections. The National Education Association issued a statement calling the tour “a publicity stunt designed to undermine public education and divert attention from chronic underfunding.” Meanwhile, the American Federation of Teachers pointed to data showing that states with the most expansive school voucher programs have seen mixed academic outcomes, with some studies indicating that students who use vouchers perform no better — and in some cases worse — than their public school peers on standardized tests.
Still, the political momentum appears to be on McMahon’s side. Polling from Gallup and Pew Research Center conducted earlier this year shows that a majority of American parents now favor school choice policies, and trust in the federal government’s ability to manage education remains near historic lows. With the 2026 midterm elections approaching, the administration is betting that a message of local empowerment will resonate with suburban voters — a key swing demographic that has shifted toward Republicans in recent cycles. Whether the tour leads to concrete legislative outcomes or remains a symbolic exercise will depend on how effectively McMahon translates local grievances into federal action.
**Fontes**
- U.S. Department of Education press release, October 19, 2026. - The White House, Executive Order on Reducing Federal Oversight in Education, March 2025. - National Education Association, statement on Secretary McMahon’s tour, October 20, 2026. - American Federation of Teachers, analysis of school voucher outcomes, September 2026. - Gallup, “Trust in Government: Education,” annual survey, 2026. - Pew Research Center, “Parental Attitudes on School Choice,” June 2026. - Ohio Department of Education, EdChoice Scholarship Program data, 2025-2026.