Re: “,” Jan. 3 Fred Hiatt column.
In his opinion column, Fred Hiatt points out that charter schools in Washington D.C. and New Orleans have been very effective. They have been effective because of oversight. They close low-performing charter schools and prevent schools from turning away hard to serve students.
Betsy DeVos has worked diligently to make sure that there is little oversight for charter schools. While a measure to add oversight to charter schools in Detroit was before the Michigan legislature, she and her husband donated $1.45 million to legislators. Not surprisingly, oversight was not included in the final legislation.
As a result, there are many poor performing charter schools in Michigan continuing to do a disservice to children. Betsy DeVos’s confirmation hearing is scheduled for Jan. 11. As a teacher and a mother, I will be contacting the members of the U.S. Senate HELP Committee and demanding that our secretary of education be someone who truly advocates for all students, gives public schools the supports they need, and holds all schools accountable. That person is not Betty DeVos.
Rachel Bennett Barnes, Denver
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