DeVos Failed the Open Book Exam
Being shaken by the goings on in Washington, happens with greater frequency these days, as the election of the disrupter in chief is akin to a bull in a china shop. As I write this, Mr. Tillerson was shown the door. With that acknowledgment, I am confident the republic will withstand the pressure and pace of the chaos and America emerge bruised and well positioned to make meaningful moves ahead for the greater good, as I am a forever optimist, particularly about this nation. So, as the public education of our youth took center stage on a “60 Minutes” interview featuring our Secretary of Education, Betsey DeVos, I was reminded of the value and absolute necessity to the general public, public education remains. Betsy knew of this interview and failed miserably in her preparation, as America was left with more questions than answers after Leslie Stahl’s examination.
What is striking is the complete avoidance of the opportunity to speak freely and openly about public education and school choice. If only ideology could take a back seat for a while to have a discussion on the merits, I am confident that the differences would be dwarfed by the common goals. But let’s face it, when the arena gladly welcomes the blood sport, little can be accomplished, as the spectacle becomes preeminent in the Trumpian age of instant gratification.
Historic reminders
A gentle reminder from John Adams may help to frame the matter at hand, in a letter penned in 1785 Adams is unequivocal, “The whole people must take upon themselves the education of the whole people and be willing to bear the expenses of it. There should not be a district of one-mile square, without a school in it, not founded by a charitable individual, but maintained at the public expense of the people themselves.” Ladies and gentlemen, this is not a debate. This is a bedrock principle. How we get there is a matter for each person, taxpayer, state, city, and town to manage, fund and deliver.
The Education Industrial Complex
Education is faced with challenges each and every day. Sadly, some of the solutions, “so-called” have included broad brush, and bloated bureaucracies, bearing down on classrooms and teachers, which redound to our children. In the past several decades more pronounced tribal alliances have surfaced, which lead nowhere, except to a system pitted against itself, through antiquated governance. The creation of top-heavy administrations, enabled by phifedoms built and maintained in every corner of the nation also hobble teachers. Not to mention, the curriculums handed down from on high, developed by “who knows”, as the education industrial complex grew and mutated into a behemoth, at the expense of our kids. Textbooks, resources, and software are no longer tools for teachers, they represent wealth to these gargantuan conglomerates which are tied to Wall Street, hedge funds and family fortunes wrapped in trusts. Far too often these companies dripping in money are perceived as saviors for school districts that are desperate for funding. Often times the immediate gratification of a short-term infusion of resource or money is too hard to resist, but those funds come with giant corporate strings and become like crack to the junkie and districts and administrators are hooked. Yet, amongst all of that greed, it remains all too easy to blame the teachers unions and unfortunately, that push back resonates.
Meet Betsey
Ms. DeVos represents more than disruption, she represents a moneyed and singularly focused assault on public education; quick to blame teachers and teacher unions and gin up the base who buy into the notion that fair labor practices are anathema to good learning environments. DeVos and her family of billionaires set forth to reform education and broaden the school choice movement in America. DeVos comes from Michigan, as a member of the wealthy Prince family, her father a mogul in the auto parts industry. So, with regard to the Betsy DeVos “60 Minutes” interview, even I became somewhat pessimistic and for certain, shaken by her lack of rudimentary principles of education and its roots in the founding of this nation.
When asked to weigh in on varied subjects including, institutional racism, the underperformance of Michigan’s schools, funding and test scores. Her responses amounted to platitudes. Responding to pointed questions about Department of Education reforms DeVos offered this, “We need to ensure that all students have an opportunity to learn in a safe and nurturing environment. And all students means all students.” DeVos also admitted she never visited an underperforming or troubled school in 13 months as Secretary, and this should alarm all of us. Perhaps, the 50- 50 Senate confirmation vote, with the Vice President rushing down from the US Naval Observatory to deliver the tie breaking confirmation was a harbinger of things to come.
DevVos’s bio lists her as a politician, philanthropist, entrepreneur, and activist. Let us not forget her brother, Eric Prince, the founder of Blackwater, a colossal military contractor whose wealth burgeoned with the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He now is the subject of questionable meeting with Russians in Seychelles. Make no mistake, this family’s political ties run long and deep. A veracious GOP fundraiser, she earned the GOP National Committeewoman title in 1992. Her wealth allowed her to reach the upper echelons of GOP party politics and to her credit; she used her money and megaphone to grow the charter school and school choice movement in Michigan; arguably, a failing venture. This by no means is a criticism, as for a being woman in a man’s world she amassed and used her power for personal gain, wealth building, activism, and philanthropy. But, nowhere in her biography is the mere mention of real classroom experience or actual school administration experience.
Teachers and Parents are the Answer
My roots in the classroom began in the classrooms of the City of Providence in the early 80’s and then migrated to the parochial system when given an opportunity to teach in a Catholic High School. Neither of these experiences; public or private, would I trade for the world. My respect for teachers in both educational forums remains immense I am proud to have served with them; they are the lifeblood of the republic. Although the bulk of my teaching experience came in the Parochial system, I value my contributions to education overall. As Thomas Jefferson, he himself an education reformer, reminds us of the value of the students in the public system, “…“to work out their own greatest happiness, by showing them that it does not depend on the condition of life in which chance has placed them, but is always the result of a good conscience, good health, occupation, and freedom in all just pursuits.”
Inasmuch as the friction between the teaching communities is touted; parochial vs. charter vs. public vs. independent, it too is a red herring, as any good teacher (public, private, parochial, independent) will tell you, “It is in classrooms that the magic happens.”
If you truly want to fix the education system, beckon the teachers and honestly engage the parents and leave the bureaucrats to create spreadsheets.
My $.02
Carol
