There is no telling the impact that Betsy DeVos will have as U.S. secretary of education. But as DeVos takes control of the department after a contentious confirmation process, it is important for Washington schools to remain focused upon what matters to students and parents in the state.
DeVos was confirmed Tuesday as Vice President Mike Pence broke a 50-50 tie in the Senate. She brings negligible qualifications to the post, having never been an administrator, teacher, student or even parent in a public school. Her role as a deep-pocketed advocate for vouchers and charter schools — in addition to donations of about $200 million to Republican causes over the years — apparently was enough to give her credibility on school issues in the eyes of President Trump and the Republican senators who voted for her.
While the opposition to DeVos ultimately failed, it is important to laud the efforts of Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., in helping to lead the fight against the nomination. In the end, two Republican senators sided with Democrats in voting against DeVos, sending the decision to Pence.
Among the most notable issues surrounding DeVos is the question of charter schools, which are a point of contention in Washington. In 2012, voters statewide approved the establishment of a small number of charter schools with 50.7 percent of the vote (in Clark County, Initiative 1240 was approved on 52.3 percent of ballots). Since then, the state’s nascent charter school program has endured court battles and legislative wrangling.
While The Columbian has editorially supported charter schools, there are some vast differences between Washington’s system and DeVos’ vision for schools that are privately run with public money. In Michigan, her home state, she has advocated a largely unregulated system, the kind that is open to poor school performance and corruption. Washington’s more thoughtful system provides strong oversight for charters that can easily shut down schools if they do not live up to their mandate of demonstrably improving student outcomes.
This state’s charter school guidelines are preferable to those in many states, where charters often devolve into opportunities to line the pockets of the “educators” in charge. Regardless of which directives eventually come from Washington, D.C., regarding charter schools, Washington state should retain strict control over such schools and insist that they accomplish their stated goals.
Meanwhile, DeVos’ support for vouchers — which allow students to attend private or parochial schools while using public money — is worthy of discussion but should be a hard sell. The thinking is that vouchers would increase competition and improve the quality of schools; in truth, they probably would decimate the public schools that are essential to the future of our nation. In too many cases, evidence shows, public schools are not adequately educating our children, but the goal must be to build up and support those schools rather than tear down the system.
DeVos’ confirmation hearings revealed somebody who is unqualified and ill-informed when it comes to education. But the fact is that schools remain largely the purview of local legislators and local school boards. It is up to us and to the people we directly elect to create schools that will prepare students for the future, and that remains unchanged.
The fate of Washington’s children is in our hands, regardless of who holds power in Washington, D.C.
