Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos echoed President-elect Trump’s support for “disbanding” and “de-powering” the Department of Education, saying the window of opportunity is “wide open” as he begins to roll out his administration’s agenda ahead of taking office.
While DeVos acknowledged this goal is a “priority,” the longtime advocate for school choice emphasized that there are “more immediate” things that need to be done first, which include cleaning up the federal tax credit, “giving rocket fuel” to school choice education freedom and fixing Title IX.
“There are many steps that can be taken to re-empower states and local communities, and importantly, families,” DeVos told “The Story with Martha MacCallum” on Tuesday.
“Take the power away from the Department of Education, block-grant those funds, continue to invest in education, but get it down to a much more local level where better decisions are made on behalf of students,” DeVos proposed. “The bureaucrats at the Department of Education aren’t doing the job. They haven’t done the job for more than four decades to close the achievement gaps — they’ve only widened.”
DeVos served as the 11th U.S. Department of Education secretary during the Trump administration from 2017 until 2021.
In 1979, Congress passed the Department of Education Organization Act, leading to the creation of the department, which began its operations in May 1980 under former President Carter’s administration. However, in his 1982 State of the Union address, former President Reagan called to shutter the department.
Donald Trump speaks with Betsy DeVos at a roundtable with family members of victims, state and local officials, and Cabinet members to discuss recommendations in the Federal Commission on School Safety Report in the Roosevelt Room at White House on, Dec. 18, 2018 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images) (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)
In addition to other administrative priorities, DeVos is calling on Congress to pass the federal tax credit that was introduced and “championed” during Trump’s first term in office.
“That is going to add rocket fuel to the education freedom school choice programs already going on in states and give students in states that don’t yet have programs the opportunity to make those choices best for them with their families,” DeVos said.
“Secondly, like I said, every opportunity to really scale back and de-power the department. It’s going to take Congress’ cooperation and support, but that window of opportunity is wide open, given the fact that during COVID, in the years following, the unions have overplayed their hand in every area.”
DeVos added that the Department of Education “doesn’t really add any value anywhere,” pointing out that while the federal government contributes 9% of funding for K–12 education nationwide, it imposes over 90% of the regulations.
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“So all of those funds go out with strings attached, requiring states and communities to do things the way this federal agency in Washington dictates it be done,” she said. “And I guarantee you, almost all of the folks there have an agenda, and it’s not what’s best for students — it’s what’s best for adults.”
