Department of Education Organization Act

Under the Department of Education Organization Act, the department's mission is to:^[2]

• Strengthen the federal commitment to assuring access to equal educational opportunity for every individual;
• Supplement and complement the efforts of states, the local school systems and other instrumentalities of the states, the private sector, public and private nonprofit educational research institutions, community-based organizations, parents, and students to improve the quality of education;
• Encourage the increased involvement of the public, parents, and students in federal education programs;
• Promote improvements in the quality and usefulness of education through federally supported research, evaluation, and sharing of information;
• Increase the accountability of federal education programs to the president, the Congress, and the public.

In the Senate, 69 voted in favor and 22 voted against separating education from the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.^[3] In the House of Representatives, 215 voted in favor and 201 voted against.^[4] President Carter signed the bill on October 17, 1979.^[1]