Democrats Recognize Essential Role of Public Schools, Whose Needs Trump and DeVos Don’t Bother to Notice
In a refreshing development this week, as Democrats held their convention to nominate Joe Biden as the Democratic candidate for President and Kamala Harris for Vice President, public education was made visible again as an institution of vital importance to American life.
For President Donald Trump, opening schools matters only to enable parents to go to work. I have never heard Trump or his education secretary, Betsy DeVos, speak about the needs of children or acknowledge the importance of our nation’s system of universally available public schools in cities, towns, rural areas and suburbs across America.
If you watched the Democrats on Tuesday night, however, you know that Jill Biden spoke from the Brandywine High School classroom where she once taught in Wilmington, Delaware. Education Week‘s Andrew Ujifusa reports her remarks: “You can hear the anxiety that echoes down empty hallways. There’s no scent of new notebooks or freshly waxed floors… The rooms are dark as the bright young faces that should fill them are now confined to boxes on a computer screen… I hear it from so many of you: the frustration of parents juggling work while they support their children’s learning—or are afraid that their kids might get sick from school. The concern of every person working without enough protection. The despair in the lines that stretch out before food banks.” Ujifusa continues: “Joe Biden appeared at the end of her video segment to underscore his wife’s role in schools: ‘Just think of your favorite educator who gave you the confidence to believe in yourself.'”
And you may also remember that, as she announced Arizona’s votes in the nomination Roll Call, Marisol Garcia, a public middle school teacher and the vice president of the Arizona Education Association, wore a “Red4Ed” t-shirt and spoke about the needs of her state’s public schools.
On Tuesday, the delegates passed a strong, pro-public schools platform that reflects Joe Biden’s priorities. As Education Week’s Andrew Ujifusa reports, the Democratic Platform supports CONTINUE READING: Democrats Recognize Essential Role of Public Schools, Whose Needs Trump and DeVos Don’t Bother to Notice | janresseger