The Education Department gave another agency power to distribute its money. It hasn't gone well.

An ambitious Trump administration effort to restructure the Education Department through a pilot program has faced significant hurdles, raising concerns that these setbacks could weaken the broader push to overhaul the agency. Early missteps in implementing the initiative suggest deeper challenges in executing the president’s sweeping plans for federal education policy. Critics argue the instability of the pilot program may undermine confidence in the administration’s ability to deliver on its more sweeping reforms. The Labor Department’s involvement adds another layer of complexity to the restructuring debate.

The stumbles of an early Trump administration experiment to carve up the Education Department risks undercutting the president’s more dramatic demolition plan for the agency. The Labor Department ...