Trump picks charter school advocate Betsy Devos as education secretary

The nomination needs to be confirmed by Congress.

AmWay founder Richard DeVos, who also owns the Orlando Magic, was appointed to an AIDS commission by President Reagan in the mid-1980s, and determined “that actions have consequences… and AIDS is a disease people gain due to their actions”.

Betsy DeVos, 58, is the wife of Richard DeVos eldest son, Dick DeVos, who ran unsuccessfully for governor of MI in 2006.

ERIC WESTERVELT, BYLINE: Hi, Audie. She neither attended public schools nor sent her children to them. Her mother was a philanthropist and like her was opposed to gay marriage. In addition to the renamed Advocates for School Choice, it includes the Alliance for School Choice, formerly known as the Education Reform Council.

DeVos and her husband, Dick, founded a philanthropic foundation in 1998 and have donated millions to school choice, arts and health care initiatives, according to their website.

DeVos has advocated providing taxpayer money in the form of vouchers to help families pay for private and parochial schools; pressed to expand publicly funded but privately run charter schools; and tried to reduced the influence of teacher unions.

“To clarify, I am not a supporter — period”, she tweeted Wednesday as questions circulated about her position on the Common Core learning standards adopted by many states to improve student readiness for college or a career. But he hasn’t said where that 20 billion will come from.

“For too long, the educational status quo has failed too many children”, said Huizenga, in part.

WESTERVELT: Well, exactly. I do see battles ahead.

“DeVos has no meaningful experience in the classroom or in our schools. We have, and will continue, to fight for all students to have a great public school in their community and the opportunity to succeed no matter their backgrounds or circumstances”, she stated. Now, whether it comes in the form of a voucher or a scholarship tax credit, the plans at their core allow families to use public funding for private schools.

Largely unknown outside of MI political and philanthropic circles, her appointment signals that Trump intends to make school choice and a voucher plan for low-income families a centerpiece of his education agenda.

DeVos, from MI, is a longtime advocate for charter schools and school vouchers.

WESTERVELT: Well, it’s interesting.

After Trump announced his pick, Breitbart published a story blasting DeVos and calling her “pro-common core”.

A Trump spokesman says Trump has been “consistent and very clear in his opposition to Common Core” – and that anyone joining the administration is “signing on to the president-elect’s platform”.

The DeVos pick animated conservatives with interest in education reform, even those who never supported candidate Trump. But school choice and charter school advocates are over the moon. “I don’t know what, but I think it will have some benefits”.

CORNISH: That’s NPR’s Eric Westervelt. He’s spending the holiday there after a week of interviews of potential appointees in NY, punctuated by announcements of members of his national security team.

WESTERVELT: You’re welcome, Audie.