The constitution grants specific legal powers to the federal gov't, leaving all others to the states or to the people.  Education is not a federal power, there are no federal schools (except the military academies) yet the DOEd is the fastest growing, cabinet level, federal department.  This is very dangerous since the states now are dependent on federal funds (about 10% of most state budgets) in order to provide this basic service.  Along with this federal money comes mandates that greatly restrict what the state may (and may not) do with regard to their education systems.  The cost of K-12 and college education has grown as a direct result of these federal subsidies, yet our nation's test scores, in relation to other developed nations, continue to drop.