Department of Education agenda: Reading, writing and religion
Amid budget cuts, DeVos supports Christian bible classes in public schools
The Trump administration has proposed a 12% cut in Department of Education spending under its yearly budget. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos is busily eliminating programs to help public schools and promoting private education efforts under the motto of choice.
Yet somehow, magically, there is support for the growth of teaching Christian Bible classes in public schools.
Once again, we have an out-and-out statement about what is important in this administration—not school shootings, not affirmative efforts to improve public education, not help with student debt or even the pursuit of growing sexual assault on school campuses.
Counseling Today magazine argues, for example, that it has become necessary to lobby seriously to keep federal money for school mental health. The Trump administration’s federal budget proposal cut $8.5 billion from the Department of Education, including the Student Support and Academic Enrichment program. That program supported, among other things, mental health, school security and safety, community engagement — the kind of programs that would address the issues we hear after every school shooting.
Instead, Washington Post religion writer Julie Zauzmer detailed the movement of church Bible classes from churches into public schools. She took us to Kentucky, where a new state law — one of several pending in other states — is encouraging public high schools to teach the Bible, not as part of a survey of religions, but as Bible study.
Through a legislative effort Project Blitz, activists on the religious right, have drafted a law that encourages Bible classes in public schools and persuaded at least 10 state legislatures to introduce CONTINUE READING: Department of Education agenda: Reading, writing and religion | Salon.com