No, Betsy DeVos is not qualified to be Secretary of Education

Reblogged from Eclectablog

Former Michigan Governor John Engler is out with a new piece on The Hill touting his friend, West Michigan billionaire heiress Betsy DeVos, as a “champion for all American students.” As a resident of Michigan, this strikes me as Lord Voldemort endorsing Dolores Umbridge as the Headmaster of Hogwarts, or perhaps as Stannis Baratheon offering his strong support for Melisandre of Asshai in Game of Thrones. In other words, caveat emptor.

Now, I may not be a former governor, or a billionaire, and I’ve only been involved in education since 1980 as a teacher, teacher educator, and policy researcher and author, but I’d like to respond to some of Gov. Engler’s assertions and humbly offer my thoughts on Ms. DeVos’ qualifications for this important position…

No–Betsy is not a businesswoman. She’s just rich. She was born rich, and married richer. That’s it. Nada. Ms. DeVos has never applied for, interviewed for, or been offered a job. You can’t just start out at the top as a board member–that’s not a job. That’s a reward–for being rich.

No–Betsy does not have the heart of a teacher. And just to be clear–that’s a nonsensical term. No one has the heart of a teacher. That’s just silly talk. Being a teacher is a job, and a darned hard one at that. Read more>>