Wed 6/15 @ 11:30AM-1:30PM
During the Trump administration probably the best-known and most disliked member of his cabinet was Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. Her obvious contempt for public education (something that she, offspring of a wealthy family who married into even more wealth, never attended) infuriated a vast number of Americans who strongly support their public schools and are angered by attempts to drain their resources to support private religious schools such as the one DeVos attended. She almost totally lacked an education background, but she made a big financial contribution to Donald Trump’s campaign.
She didn’t win any friends by weakening protections for students against predatory loans from for-profit colleges; or by limiting the ability of students sexually harassed, assaulted or raped on campus to bring a complaint; and she laughably used the example of Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU) to bolster her support of “school choice” by calling them its “real pioneers” without noting the HBCUs were founded because Black students had no choice; they weren’t accepted at white universities. She did outlast most members of Trump’s cabinet, resigning only the day after the January 6 insurrection.
DeVos has now written a book titled Hostages No More: The Fight for Education Freedom and the Future of the American Child in which probably won’t find much to agree with if you truly care about American kids and public education. Now out promoting it, she’ll be the guest of the City Club of Cleveland in what’s sure to be one of its more controversial forums. City Club CEO Dan Moulthrop moderates.
The forum will be livestreamed starting at noon. If you have questions tweet them to @TheCityClub or text 330-541-5794.
cityclub/a-conversation-with-former-secretary-of-education-betsy-devos