Does she have a guilty conscience about removing protection from transgender students, indebted college students, and sexual assault victims? (Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr/cc)
Nov 18, 2018
Why is Betsy DeVos afraid? In her first year in office, some protestors in Washington, D.C., objected to her visit at a public school.
Since then, she has had a special detachment of U.S. Marshalls giving her round-the-clock protection.
Other cabinet secretaries have encountered protestors. None of them are guarded by U.S. Marshalls.
Of course, she is very special. She is a billionaire.
She doesn't leave her office much. She has many days off.
She seldom visits schools, and in the few instances where she does, it is either a religious school or a charter school.
Her public schedule indicates that she doesn't have much to do, perhaps a meeting once a day, perhaps not.
Others have commented on her many "unexcused absences." A year ago, the media realized that she was absent from her job about 1/3 of the time and that she has poor work habits. Presumably she still has round-the-clock protection even when she skips work. A teacher who skipped work 1/3 of the time would be terminated.
Does she lack grit?
Does she have a guilty conscience about removing protection from transgender students, indebted college students, and sexual assault victims?
My guess is that she has led a sheltered life and wants to avoid public contact to the greatest extent possible.
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Diane Ravitch
Diane Ravitch is a historian of education at New York University. Her most recent book is "Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America's Public Schools." Her previous books and articles about American education include: "The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education," "Left Back: A Century of Battles Over School Reform," (Simon & Schuster, 2000); "The Language Police: How Pressure Groups Restrict What Students Learn" (Knopf, 2003); "The English Reader: What Every Literate Person Needs to Know" (Oxford, 2006), which she edited with her son Michael Ravitch. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Why is Betsy DeVos afraid? In her first year in office, some protestors in Washington, D.C., objected to her visit at a public school.
Since then, she has had a special detachment of U.S. Marshalls giving her round-the-clock protection.
Other cabinet secretaries have encountered protestors. None of them are guarded by U.S. Marshalls.
Of course, she is very special. She is a billionaire.
She doesn't leave her office much. She has many days off.
She seldom visits schools, and in the few instances where she does, it is either a religious school or a charter school.
Her public schedule indicates that she doesn't have much to do, perhaps a meeting once a day, perhaps not.
Others have commented on her many "unexcused absences." A year ago, the media realized that she was absent from her job about 1/3 of the time and that she has poor work habits. Presumably she still has round-the-clock protection even when she skips work. A teacher who skipped work 1/3 of the time would be terminated.
Does she lack grit?
Does she have a guilty conscience about removing protection from transgender students, indebted college students, and sexual assault victims?
My guess is that she has led a sheltered life and wants to avoid public contact to the greatest extent possible.
Diane Ravitch
Diane Ravitch is a historian of education at New York University. Her most recent book is "Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America's Public Schools." Her previous books and articles about American education include: "The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education," "Left Back: A Century of Battles Over School Reform," (Simon & Schuster, 2000); "The Language Police: How Pressure Groups Restrict What Students Learn" (Knopf, 2003); "The English Reader: What Every Literate Person Needs to Know" (Oxford, 2006), which she edited with her son Michael Ravitch. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Why is Betsy DeVos afraid? In her first year in office, some protestors in Washington, D.C., objected to her visit at a public school.
Since then, she has had a special detachment of U.S. Marshalls giving her round-the-clock protection.
Other cabinet secretaries have encountered protestors. None of them are guarded by U.S. Marshalls.
Of course, she is very special. She is a billionaire.
She doesn't leave her office much. She has many days off.
She seldom visits schools, and in the few instances where she does, it is either a religious school or a charter school.
Her public schedule indicates that she doesn't have much to do, perhaps a meeting once a day, perhaps not.
Others have commented on her many "unexcused absences." A year ago, the media realized that she was absent from her job about 1/3 of the time and that she has poor work habits. Presumably she still has round-the-clock protection even when she skips work. A teacher who skipped work 1/3 of the time would be terminated.
Does she lack grit?
Does she have a guilty conscience about removing protection from transgender students, indebted college students, and sexual assault victims?
My guess is that she has led a sheltered life and wants to avoid public contact to the greatest extent possible.
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