[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 13 (Tuesday, January 24, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S423-S424]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       NOMINATION OF BETSY DeVOS

  Mr. PETERS. Madam President, I rise today to speak on the nomination 
of Betsy DeVos for Secretary of Education.
  Public education is deeply personal for me. I am proud to have 
attended Michigan public schools, and I have three children who did so 
as well. I know firsthand the importance of a strong public education 
system. My father Herb was a proud teacher and taught English for 32 
years in Rochester, MI, where I grew up.
  My father was part of the ``greatest generation.'' He fought for our 
country in World War II and returned home to help build America's 
middle class. Our Nation owes these men and women a debt of gratitude 
for building a country where anyone who is willing to work hard and 
play by the rules can find opportunity.
  But too many families today feel that the American dream remains just 
out of reach. It seems that they can hardly get by, much less get 
ahead. At a time of growing income inequality, public schools can and 
do provide a ladder of opportunity in communities across the Nation--
urban, rural, and suburban alike. Strong public schools are vital to 
our economy, our democracy, and to our Nation's global competitiveness.
  I think we can all agree that a child's chance to succeed should not 
be dictated by his or her ZIP Code. While many crucial education 
decisions are made at the State and at the local levels, the Federal 
Government also has a role to play in providing the necessary 
educational tools and proper protections for all of our children to 
flourish.
  We need a Secretary of Education who is dedicated to improving access 
to quality public education based on sound evidence and ensuring the 
proper implementation of Federal laws designed to protect and to help 
all of our children. That is why I am deeply troubled by President 
Trump's nomination

[[Page S424]]

of Betsy DeVos of Michigan to serve as the Secretary of Education.
  Mrs. DeVos, like so many recent graduates, is effectively applying 
for a job. And like any employer, the American people should look at 
her resume, her interview, and her past performance.
  Mrs. DeVos's resume contains no experience in public education at any 
level--not as a teacher, not as an administrator, not as a student or a 
parent, not as a school board member, and not even as a borrower of 
public loans for college.
  Her only experience in education is her work lobbying for the 
transfer of taxpayer money to private schools and the rapid expansion 
of charter schools without sufficient accountability to parents and to 
students.
  So let's look at her interview. Her appearance before the Senate HELP 
Committee last week raised many more questions and did not provide 
answers. During her confirmation hearing, Mrs. DeVos showed herself to 
be unfamiliar with some basic educational concepts, like the debate 
over whether we should measure students' success by growth or 
proficiency. If Mrs. DeVos doesn't know how to measure success, how can 
she ever be expected to achieve success in our schools?
  Mrs. DeVos also appeared to have never heard of the Individuals with 
Disabilities Education Act, one of the most important pieces of 
education and civil rights legislation in our country's history. This 
law has provided access to education for children with unique needs and 
supports their parents, who depend on the law that Mrs. DeVos will be 
in charge of enforcing, if confirmed. And it appeared as if this was 
the first time that she had ever heard of this law, just last week.
  So finally, let's take a look at her past performance. I am 
particularly troubled by Mrs. DeVos's long-time advocacy to funnel 
Michigan taxpayer dollars to private and charter school systems that 
are not held accountable for their performance.
  Let me be clear. Our education system is far from perfect, and I 
support effective, innovative educational reforms that lift up our 
children. But these reforms need to be driven by facts and not 
ideology.
  Unfortunately, in my home State of Michigan, the charter school 
experiment has not lived up to the promises made. In fact, 65 percent 
of charter schools in Michigan fail--yes, fail--to significantly 
outperform traditional public schools in reading outcomes. In Detroit, 
70 percent of charter schools are in the bottom quartile of Michigan's 
schools. These are certainly not the results that we would want to 
replicate at the national level.
  Despite these outcomes, Mrs. DeVos stated during her confirmation 
hearing that she did not think that public charter schools should be 
held to the same standards as traditional public schools.
  Well, that simply doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense that many 
charter schools accepting taxpayer money not only performed worse than 
traditional public schools in terms of academic success but also get to 
skirt laws that protect against discrimination and support disabled 
youth. We should hold all schools receiving Federal dollars to the same 
level of accountability.
  I have reviewed her resume, her interview, and her track record, and 
I have no confidence that Mrs. DeVos will fully support our traditional 
public schools, our teachers, our parents, and, most importantly, our 
children, who only get one shot. They just get one shot to get an 
excellent K-12 education.
  Her approach to education has failed the children of Michigan, and 
her confirmation process gives me no reason to think that she will 
bring a more successful approach to our Nation.
  American children deserve the opportunity for a quality education no 
matter who they are and no matter where they live. I stand with the 
many educators and parents in Michigan and across the Nation when I 
say: Mrs. DeVos lacks the experience, qualifications, and the right 
vision to oversee our Nation's educational system. Simply put, our 
children deserve a whole lot better.
  I cannot and will not support Betsy DeVos's nomination to serve as 
the Secretary of Education, and I hope my colleagues will join me in 
unity against her nomination.
  Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Kennedy). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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