Betsy DeVos Trumps Nominee for Education Secretary is an Enemy of Public Schools with Carol Corbett Burris became Executive Director of the Network for Public Education Foundation in August 2015, after serving as principal of South Side High School in the Rockville Centre School District in NY since 2000. In 2010, she was named Educator of the Year by the School Administrators Association of NYS and in 2013, she was named SAANYS NYS High School Principal of the Year. Dr. Burris co-authored Detracking for Excellence and Equity (2008) and authored On the Same Track: How Schools Can Join the 21st Century Struggle against Re-segregation (2014). .
DeVos has not taught or worked in public schools, or been a parent of public school children, or earned experience or expertise as a leader, scholar, or teacher educator in public school districts. Yto advance Trumps call to deregulate and privatize, she would be ideal.
Through her family foundation (funded by the Amway fortune), and through her personal role on boards for such advocacy organizations as Jeb Bushs Foundation for Excellence in Education, she has effectively leveraged her wealth to shape policy, including the expansion of school-choice and voucher programs, alongside the deregulation of charter schools. The research is clear that none of these 'reforms' will strengthen public education overall, and instead, have already proven to indirectly or even directly exacerbate inequities.
Public education should be treated as a centerpiece for strengthening any democratic nation, and what the U.S. needs now is not the heralding of silver bullets but instead the investment in systemic reforms that draw on both a sound body of research and a compelling vision of the promises of public schools. The narrow and ill-informed vision and rhetoric put forth by Trump and DeVos take us in the wrong direction. ******************* Brave New Films presents Protect Public Education - Stop Betsy DeVos!
Trumps nomination of Betsy DeVos for Education Secretary is a threat to public education. DeVos has spent millions funding the privatization of education in Michigan. The result? A failing school system where almost 80% of schools are run by private, for-profit companies. The charter schools in Michigan, influenced by DeVoss agenda, perform lower than national averages, have been criticized for misuse of taxpayer funding, and frequently shut down doors without warning or community input. Adding to the alarm is the fact that DeVos has never held a professional position in education in her life, but plans to lead the Department of Education, where she would be in charge of overseeing and providing equal access to quality education for all Americans.
produced by Mimi Rosenberg and Ken Nash
please notify us if you plan to broadcast this program - knash@igc.org
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