WHAT THEY ARE SAYING – DeVos “A True Change Agent” (Vol. XIV)

Editorial boards, pundits and Americans across the country continue to make their voices heard in support of Betsy DeVos following her confirmation hearing last week. Below is a round-up showing why so many are excited for her to take the reins of the Dept. of Education:

Anthony Williams, Former Mayor Of Washington, D.C. “Betsy DeVos Will Fight For Parents & School Children”

• “We need a wholesale rethinking of the manner in which we educate our children. In today’s increasingly complex world, we can’t rely on one-size-fits-all approaches that have proven to be unsuccessful in preparing our children for the jobs of the future.”

• “Betsy DeVos is a woman of enormous character and heart. She cares deeply about the quality of education that is being delivered to our children, especially the at-risk students in cities like Washington, D.C. that are too often let down by failing public schools.”

• “There is no question that Mrs. DeVos has the experience, qualifications and backbone to be a great secretary of education.” 

Rod Paige, Former U.S. Secretary Of Education: “It was clear that she is kind of a target from the group that I loosely refer to as ‘the guardians of the status quo.’ She represents, for them, some reasonably dangerous change.”.  

• “We should be interested in positive change.”

Bret Schundler, Former New Jersey Commissioner Of Education: “DeVos has been laboring to expand the educational enfranchisement of the poor for a long time.”

• “There will come a day when America’s public schools are dramatically better than they are today, and when all Americans, the poor as well as the rich, can choose from among excellent public and private school options for their children. Come that day, we will look back on the education battles of the last 20 years and those that are yet to come and we will celebrate the courageous leadership of people such as Betsy DeVos who fought for the progress achieved.”

West Virginia State Senator Dave Sypolt: “Betsy DeVos is an inspired choice for U.S. Secretary of Education for a number of reasons, but the most important is that she’s an unapologetic proponent of local control.”

• “She’s a reformer and a disrupter. She understands that American education cannot and will not improve if we continue doing things the same way they’ve always been done.”

• “Betsy DeVos will be Secretary of Education that West Virginia needs in Washington, D.C. She will be a Secretary of Education who will shake up the parts of the system that are not working and embrace new approaches. She will be an Secretary of Education who will listen to parents and education experts from all fields. And most important, Betsy DeVos will be a Secretary of Education who will put students first.”

Missouri State Representative Shamed Dogan: “Betsy DeVos’ record of service to our nation’s children is matched by few.” 

• While I don’t agree with with the President-elect on every issue, I wholeheartedly support his pledge to give families more control over their children’s education. Betsy DeVos will make good on that promise.”

• “A political outsider and a strong believer in ensuring every child has access to a great education regardless of zip code, she is the ideal choice to upset the established order and bring about change in Washington.” 

• “The voters spoke loudly and clearly in November that they are ready for a new direction in Washington, and Betsy DeVos is emblematic of the change that Americans want to see in education.”

West Virginia Delegate Paul Espinosa: “We need a fresh voice in Washington so that the millstone of unfunded mandates does not continue to burden what has historically been the responsibility of state and local governments: the education of our children. Betsy DeVos is that fresh voice.” 

• “Betsy DeVos is eminently qualified to be this country’s Secretary of Education. She has worked to expand school choice, virtual education, education savings accounts and other programs that have given hundreds of thousands of students access to a quality education regardless of their income levels, what neighborhoods they live in, or their race.” 

• “One of the things that sets Betsy DeVos apart is that she believes that institutions must be held accountable just as students are…Betsy DeVos is not just the Secretary of Education that the United States needs. She is also the Secretary of Education that we need for West Virginia.”

Former Vice-President Dick Cheney & Lynne Cheney: ““We need a leader who is willing to challenge the education establishment in our nation…The reality is our K-12 system is failing far short of what children deserve and what our nation requires to remain an economic power.” 

Editorial, New Hampshire Union-Leader: “In Washington, Senate Democrats are dutifully carrying water for the teachers’ unions that get them re-elected by attacking Education Secretary nominee Betsy DeVos. DeVos has been a champion for school choice, especially in her home state of Michigan where she helped give poor families some of the same choices available to the rich.”

• “Neither DeVos nor Edelblut has experience inside the public education bureaucracy. Democrats consider this disqualifying. We find it refreshing.” 

Editorial, Las Vegas Review-Journal: “DeVos, the head of the American Federation for Children, has been a leader in the school choice and charter school movements over the past two decades. Not surprisingly, she has also been vehemently opposed by some of the country’s most powerful unions.”

• “You can tell a lot about somebody through their enemies. In Ms. DeVos’ case, the rabid teacher union opposition is an excellent reason why she should be confirmed.”

Editorial, The Toledo Blade: “If Mrs. DeVos can focus on letting students and their parents make choices, she may provide just the shakeup American education needs.”

• “The words ‘school choice’ are fighting words to teachers unions. But for many parents who want the best for their children, especially for inner-city families trapped in failing schools, choice means opportunity. As a sincere advocate of more choice, Mrs. DeVos is a change agent feared by the status quo.”

• “She is an angel of reform.”

Ingrid Jacques, The Detroit News: “DeVos Shows Grit At Hearing”

• “Overall, DeVos kept her cool despite grandstanding by Democratic senators.” 

• “DeVos held her own on these topics and made it clear she intends to take the department in a different direction. And she did an excellent job defending her philosophy of education: ‘For me, it’s simple: Trust parents and believe in our children.’” 

Shikha Dalmia, The Week: “The Foolish Democratic Crusade Against Betsy DeVos”

• “The fact of the matter is that there are two education paradigms in this country — the old one that favors public accountability via the political process and the new one that favors parental accountability via the market process. Democrats are wedded to the first one for ideological reasons — despite its 200-year history of failing poor kids — and simply won’t give the second a chance.”

• “If the DeVos confirmation hearing exposed anything at all, it is that the Democratic Party is now the Dogmatic Party.” 

Helen Raleigh, TownHall:  “Betsy DeVos could have retreated to a sheltered life as a result of her wealth. Instead, she devoted 30 years to help better education outcomes especially for students from low income families.”

• “If confirmed, Betsy DeVos will be the first secretary of education who can break the norm and can give American parents and children educational choices.

• “So, yes, it’s in our national interest to give Betsy DeVos a chance.” 

Tera Myers: “The Democrats in the hearing room were far more interested in delivering political cheap shots and scoring points for their special interest friends than having a fair and balanced discussion about Mrs. DeVos’ qualifications and her philosophy for education reform. It was a sad and sorry spectacle.”

• “As a parent of a child with Down Syndrome, I take great offense to the suggestion of some Democrats and their benefactors in the teacher’s unions that Mrs. DeVos doesn’t care about students with developmental disabilities. I know Betsy DeVos because she came to Ohio and stood shoulder to shoulder with me and other parents of children with special needs to fight for access to better schools.”

• “Mrs. DeVos joined our cause in Ohio to create a voucher program to allow parents to send their kids to private schools that do a better job of educating special needs students. Thanks to Mrs. DeVos advocacy, my son, Sam, gained access to a better school and is now a high school graduate.”

• “I know that Betsy DeVos has a big heart and deep concern for all students in America, especially the most vulnerable children.” 

Steve Schuck, Founder Of The Parents Challenge: “The best and most cost-effective way to meet the needs of students is to give their parents the information and resources to choose the school they think is best for them, which is exactly what DeVos has dedicated her life to providing to low-income families to whom such a choice has not been available.”

• “Betsy DeVos has given of herself to help underprivileged kids she does not know gain access to a quality education.”

• “She is a great American who, in the tradition of our nation’s founders, has the courage of her convictions and continues to make personal and familial sacrifices in order to expand educational freedom and opportunities for others.”

Lori Hamm, East Helena, MT: “The promise to make America great again starts with improving education. Betsy DeVos, the nominee to be the next Education Secretary, has spent nearly 30 years fighting against special interests. Sen. Jon Tester must vote to confirm her so she can bring that experience to Washington to fight for all of the children in our country.”

• “DeVos is absolutely qualified to be Education Secretary, and you need look no further to the hysterical fits special interest groups are pitching to know that she will be a force for reform in education.”