The lesson of Betsy DeVos' confirmation: Not voting has consequences

To the editor: It is clear to me after the Senate voted 51-50 (with Vice President Mike Pence breaking the tie) to confirm Betsy DeVos as secretary of Education that the Republicans care nothing about honesty or qualifications; this woman has no idea...

EDUCATION
07 February 2017 Tuesday 22:09

The lesson of Betsy DeVos' confirmation: Not voting has consequences

To the editor: It is clear to me after the Senate voted 51-50 (with Vice President Mike Pence breaking the tie) to confirm Betsy DeVos as secretary of Education that the Republicans care nothing about honesty or qualifications; this woman has no idea of what education means in this country.

She is not an educator. She evidently did not know what the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act was, did not know the facts about educational testing and appears to have plagiarized part of her questionnaire.

My government has been disastrously hijacked.

Jan Goldsmith, Sherman Oaks

To the editor: The confirmation of DeVos may ultimately provide her one lasting contribution to education in America: the lesson that not voting has consequences.

Stefan Gerber, Los Angeles

To the editor: As a retired public school teacher whose career was spent in large part serving socioeconomically marginalized urban communities, I’m acutely aware that schools are often a reflection of historic ills in our society.

Charter schools, as they are now, are merely a permutation of “white flight” to the suburbs and offer no systemic solutions. Instead, they represent what is commonly referred to as a “brain drain” from our public schools since they tend to serve students of the most involved parents. Public schools must take all comers.

Until the day comes when charter schools state that they want the most behaviorally and academically challenged students because they’ve devised a proven approach that will turn around such at-risk students, advocates who have diverted tax dollars to charter schools like DeVos should be prevented from assuming leadership roles in public education.

Jeff Siskin, Canyon Country

To the editor: Parents in Wyoming can rest easy with DeVos now serving as the secretary of Education.

During her Senate hearing, DeVos was asked about guns in schools. She said guns may have a place in Wyoming schools to keep children safe from “potential” grizzly bears.

We have mountain lions in Griffith Park. Why isn’t she concerned about kids in Los Angeles?

William Goldman, Palos Verdes Estates

To the editor: Over the years, some have been spelling it “Amerika” as a protest against a government that doesn’t always reflect our values. With DeVos’ confirmation, I fear that we’ll see a lot more of that in the near future as spelling and other basic education goes out the window.

“Maik Amerika Grate Agen!”

Barry Davis, Agoura Hills

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