U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos criticized teachers unions as she accused them of using the coronavirus pandemic to advance a political agenda.
During a Fox News interview, DeVos claimed a substantial number of school districts are disregarding the needs of students amid their concerns about the pandemic.
“We have seen all too many districts and all too many schools across the country not actually addressing the needs of students anticipating school in the fall,” DeVos said on Wednesday.
Despite coronavirus outbreaks in various school districts that have already opened across the United States, DeVos argues that her department’s push to reopen schools is rooted in “science.”
She continued, “We all want to ensure students and teachers are safe when they are in school again, but those things can be done and can be clearly accomplished. The science is very clear on this.”
DeVos insisted she is focused on making sure children are “not being held captive to other people’s fears and agendas” as she claimed teachers’ unions have used families and children to place an emphasis on “alternative agendas” not relative to the pandemic.
According to DeVos, teachers unions are prioritizing “defunding the police, universal health care, destroying charter schools, eliminating the D.C. Scholarship Opportunity Program. This is all what teachers unions are demanding in order for kids to go back to school.”
See DeVos’ remarks below:
Betsy Devos warns of children being held "captive to other people's fears and agendas" pic.twitter.com/9DEcTln35E
— Jason S. Campbell (@JasonSCampbell) August 13, 2020
DeVos’ latest remarks criticizing teachers unions come just days before the implementation of her new Title IX rule which categorizes “sexual harassment, including sexual assault, as unlawful sex discrimination.”
While state leaders have made an attempt to block the historic rule, District of Columbia Circuit Court Judge Carl John Nichols ruled in DeVos’ favor.
DeVos has also released a statement about the ruling ahead of the rule taking effect on Friday.
The statement read: “With yet another failed attempt to block our historic Title IX Rule, we can now look forward to it taking effect this Friday, requiring schools to act in meaningful ways to support survivors of sexual misconduct without sacrificing important safeguards to protect free speech and provide all students with a transparent, reliable process.”