How Betsy DeVos May Complete The Big Money Takeover Of Our Nation’s Schools
Reactions to President-Elect Donald Trump’s announcement of Michigan philanthropist Betsy DeVos for Secretary of Education have ranged from high praise, to wary acceptance, to immediate condemnation.
What few have noticed is how much her nomination represents business as usual in national education policy-making.
This is not to normalize extremism in politics and government because DeVos certainly has extreme views on a range of issues, as explained below.
But what DeVos represents in a very great sense is how rich people’s grip on the nation’s public education system has reached a choking point.
No doubt, education policy led by Trump and DeVos will differ from the previous administration, but what’s staying the same is how wealthy private interests will strongly influence policies.
Grasping this essential truth matters a lot in the “nasty” politics of education today, where the real debate is not so much about charters and choice as it is about who is in control.
Playgrounds For The Rich
In her best-selling book The Death and Life of the Great American School System, education historian Diane Ravitch includes a chapter on “The Billionaire Boys Club” that documents how education policy has been the result of the ideological convergence of three wealthy foundations that How Betsy DeVos May Complete The Big Money Takeover Of Our Nation’s Schools: