As a future educator, I continue to develop my own education policy and what I feel is the best approach to teaching my future students. Although I recognize that all teachers are going to differ when it comes to the optimum teaching method, the children’s’ best interest should one hundred percent be the top priority. How can we provide the knowledge and the resources needed for our students to reach their fullest potential? An educator has the responsibility to assist each and every single student in becoming their best selves, academically, socially, and morally. With this in mind, I am incredibly concerned with Donald Trump’s nomination for Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos.

Many people were forced to question DeVos’ nomination after her appalling performance at her confirmation hearing on January 17th. DeVos proved herself to be an inadequate candidate for the leader of education with a lack of knowledge for basic education policies, insubstantial plans for the future of public education, and an inferior amount of personal and leadership experience.

There were multiple instances in which Betsy failed to accurately address concerns brought forward by senators at the hearing. Among the many, the most concerning were her responses regarding IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, equal accountability for schools that receive taxpayer funds, and the notion of guns having a place on school campuses. IDEA is an act that protects the rights of students with disabilities ensuring that they receive a free public education without question. DeVos persistently responded to Senator Tom Kaine that the states should be in charge of handling how schools that receive federal funding comply to IDEA.

In addition to the issue of possible inequality that could occur between states when meeting needs of students with disabilities with her method of “best left to the states”, DeVos displayed her lack of knowledge that IDEA is a federal law. When Senator Maggie Hassan confronted her about her clear misunderstanding, she simply said, “I may have confused it.” Children with disabilities currently make up thirteen percent of the education population. How can we trust these children’s well deserved education in the hands of someone who is “confused” about whether IDEA is a state by state act or a federal law? These kids need someone to advocate for them, not someone who barely understands their rights to an education.

When Senator Kaine again brought up the issue of equal accountability within schools that receive taxpayer funding, including public, public charter, and private schools, DeVos refused to answer in any other way other than “I support accountability.” Kaine continued to press her by rewording his questions and then finally bluntly asking her whether or not she agreed with the fact that all schools should receive taxpayer funding, she finally stated she did not. Her refusal to go into the topic and her lack of support in funding all schools goes to show her discrimination within the education system providing funding for the schools she deems fit. Every single child is important. Every single child deserves an education. How can some schools be held more accountable than others? Why do some schools deserve the funding needed to provide this education and others do not?

Lastly, the past years have had numerous, horrific school shooting incidents that have left many brokenhearted. It was extremely concerning to hear DeVos’ stance when Senator Chris Murphy addressed the issue of whether of not guns belonged in schools. She expressed her support for Donald Trump’s approach to remove gun free zones around schools as well as giving the example of a school in need for a gun on campus to protect against grizzly bears to support her theory that guns do in fact have a place on school campuses. How can the future education leader even justify possibly having a gun on my future campus with the possibility of injuring my students with the slight chance that a grizzly bear might be a threat? I was completely astonished and sick to my stomach at the thought, specifically for the families that have been affected by the terrible school shootings in the past years, that this woman could begin to think that guns have a place near the education system. Overall, DeVos’ performance and responses to multiple Senator’s questions was disappointing and apprehensive to aspiring educators like myself, parents, and the future of education.

Betsy DeVos continues the drive to privatize education and to put funding in support for private schools and public charters. Here are my two questions in regard to her approach: “How do the kids who come from low income families benefit from a private school that they can’t even afford to go to in the first place?” and “How can we expect kids to travel miles every single day to receive an education when others only have to walk two blocks?” Privatizing education only seems like another way to isolate lower income families from receiving a rightful education. Public schools have just as much potential to provide a strong education as private or public charter schools do. Children are the future leaders of this country. How is the little boy or girl who will one day sit in her seat going to receive the education needed if the only suitable school is 30 miles away or too much for his/her family to pay for? Education is the foundation for our future generations. It’s time we treat it as so and I don’t feel that Betsy DeVos has any intention of getting us there. Betsy herself has not put her own children through a public education system nor has she received public education herself. Without the knowledge or experience with education, I don’t see how she can be an adequate Secretary of Education.

Although it is looking like she will be the next Secretary of Education, as a future educator, I promise to continue to fight for our children and their deserved equal education regardless of the circumstances. I do not stand with Betsy DeVos as my role model and will strive for change within my own classroom every single day of my career.