Biden's education secretary repeatedly stresses the importance of "wellness" and "equity" as center to the agency's priorities despite the nation's children experiencing a "catastrophic" decline in literacy Education Secretary Miguel Cardona was blasted by parent groups and advocates for leaving out academics in a statement of priorities amid the Department of Education's annual report card indicating the largest score drop in reading among 9-year-old students since 1990. As children struggle to read on grade level, the DOE has been spending hundreds of millions on equity-focused programs and grants.