Resource Center

By Tionna Ryan • Federal Education Law and Policy Update • October 9, 2025

Resource from the Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA), a nonprofit advancing education equity.

In July, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it would allow the Trump administration to resume dismantling the U.S. Department of Education. The court’s decision lifted the injunction issued by a district judge in Massachusetts, which had temporarily reinstated laid-off employees from across the department.

By siding with the administration, the court permitted the layoffs to continue.

However, the judge’s order required a gradual reinstatement of former OCR employees, with 85 returning in September and another 60 scheduled every two weeks through early November.

But according to a decision issued on October 6 by a three-judge panel of the First Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston, the administration may now proceed with terminating nearly half of its civil rights enforcement staff. The ruling overturns the earlier OCR reinstatement order.

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has been critical to ensuring schools and education agencies comply with federal laws, such as Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This decision is a big step backward and also strips away essential protections, leaving countless students without the federal safeguards they need and deserve.

This article appeared with other articles in the October 2025 edition of the IDRA Federal Education Law and Policy Update. See the full edition.

FAQs

Q: How many employees are affected?

A: Nearly half of the Office for Civil Rights staff will lose their positions.

Q: What does this mean for students?

A: Weaker federal oversight of discrimination and civil rights compliance in schools.

Q: Why does OCR matter?

A: It ensures schools follow laws like Title IV and protects against discrimination.