by Pa Rock
Educator
Donald Trump, a man whose vocabulary and writing skills quit developing somewhere around fourth grade, has never been much of a proponent for education, especially the "public" education of America's non-rich sector. That is certainly one of the reasons that he appointed his major campaign donor, Betsy DeVos, as his Secretary of Education. DeVos, who has devoted a lifetime to championing religious, private, and charter schools, which all draw money and resources away from public schools, has spent four years in Washington, DC, promoting the education of the privileged few over that of everyone else.
And then there are Mike and Mother (Karen) Pence. Mike, the homophobic former governor of Indiana, has also never been an open champion of free public education, and Mother teaches art at a private school in Virginia which refuses admission to the children of gay parents.
It would seem to say that the Trump administration has never been known for being supportive of K-12 education in the United States, particularly if that education was what is commonly described as taxpayer-funded public education.
But over the past few weeks Trump has suddenly begun expressing a loud interest in America's schools. Monday he issued a tweet in all caps that said: "SCHOOLS MUST OPEN IN THE FALL!!!" That was followed yesterday by several education stakeholder groups being brought to the White House for pep talks on the need to reopen schools in the fall. Also yesterday Vice President Pence and Education Secretary DeVos had conference calls with governors encouraging them to reopen the schools, with both officials saying that returning to school was essential to the health of the US economy.
(Open schools give parents someplace to send their kids while the parents return to their jobs.)
This morning Trump was again banging out tweets calling for schools to reopen. An hour ago he had this to say in a tweet:
And schools are undoubtedly opening in some countries where the pandemic is under control, but the pandemic is still massively out-of-control in the United States. Currently nearly three-quarters of the states are experiencing increases in reported cases, hospitalizations, and even deaths.
Yesterday the Commissioner of Education in Florida announced that all of that state's school districts would resume classes in the fall. That is in spite of the fact that Florida is currently experiencing record increases in COVID-19 cases. Other states are being more cautious, at least for the time being.
Public K-12 schools are run primarily through state and local funding, with only modest contributions from the federal government, but Trump, as noted in the above tweet, is threatening to use the small federal contributions to schools as a club to force their reopening. He is also politicizing the issue by accusing Democrats of wanting to keep schools closed until the November elections, presumably as a way of embarrassing him and his administration.
Most schools are funded by complicated formulas that factor in student enrollment and attendance figures. Opening schools will be expensive, perhaps more expensive than ever before as some schools will likely go in shifts in order to allow for social distancing - a process that would call for more teachers and support staff. More coronavirus testing will also have to be done in schools to insure that asymptomatic carriers are not present and spreading the virus, and more money will be required for extra cleaning of school facilities. Also, some parents will not send their children back to school regardless of what Trump demands - and those lower enrollment numbers will play out across school funding formulas.
It is going to be a very difficult year for education in the United States, with or without interference from the Trump administration, but Trump, Pence, and DeVos all seem hellbent on maximizing the difficulty and exposing America's children to massive health and safety risks.
Oh for the days when children were our priority!
Educator
Donald Trump, a man whose vocabulary and writing skills quit developing somewhere around fourth grade, has never been much of a proponent for education, especially the "public" education of America's non-rich sector. That is certainly one of the reasons that he appointed his major campaign donor, Betsy DeVos, as his Secretary of Education. DeVos, who has devoted a lifetime to championing religious, private, and charter schools, which all draw money and resources away from public schools, has spent four years in Washington, DC, promoting the education of the privileged few over that of everyone else.
And then there are Mike and Mother (Karen) Pence. Mike, the homophobic former governor of Indiana, has also never been an open champion of free public education, and Mother teaches art at a private school in Virginia which refuses admission to the children of gay parents.
It would seem to say that the Trump administration has never been known for being supportive of K-12 education in the United States, particularly if that education was what is commonly described as taxpayer-funded public education.
But over the past few weeks Trump has suddenly begun expressing a loud interest in America's schools. Monday he issued a tweet in all caps that said: "SCHOOLS MUST OPEN IN THE FALL!!!" That was followed yesterday by several education stakeholder groups being brought to the White House for pep talks on the need to reopen schools in the fall. Also yesterday Vice President Pence and Education Secretary DeVos had conference calls with governors encouraging them to reopen the schools, with both officials saying that returning to school was essential to the health of the US economy.
(Open schools give parents someplace to send their kids while the parents return to their jobs.)
This morning Trump was again banging out tweets calling for schools to reopen. An hour ago he had this to say in a tweet:
"In Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and many other countries, SCHOOLS ARE OPEN WITH NO PROBLEMS. The Dems think it would be bad for them politically if U.S. schools open before the November Election, but is important for the children & families. May cut off funding if not open!"
And schools are undoubtedly opening in some countries where the pandemic is under control, but the pandemic is still massively out-of-control in the United States. Currently nearly three-quarters of the states are experiencing increases in reported cases, hospitalizations, and even deaths.
Yesterday the Commissioner of Education in Florida announced that all of that state's school districts would resume classes in the fall. That is in spite of the fact that Florida is currently experiencing record increases in COVID-19 cases. Other states are being more cautious, at least for the time being.
Public K-12 schools are run primarily through state and local funding, with only modest contributions from the federal government, but Trump, as noted in the above tweet, is threatening to use the small federal contributions to schools as a club to force their reopening. He is also politicizing the issue by accusing Democrats of wanting to keep schools closed until the November elections, presumably as a way of embarrassing him and his administration.
Most schools are funded by complicated formulas that factor in student enrollment and attendance figures. Opening schools will be expensive, perhaps more expensive than ever before as some schools will likely go in shifts in order to allow for social distancing - a process that would call for more teachers and support staff. More coronavirus testing will also have to be done in schools to insure that asymptomatic carriers are not present and spreading the virus, and more money will be required for extra cleaning of school facilities. Also, some parents will not send their children back to school regardless of what Trump demands - and those lower enrollment numbers will play out across school funding formulas.
It is going to be a very difficult year for education in the United States, with or without interference from the Trump administration, but Trump, Pence, and DeVos all seem hellbent on maximizing the difficulty and exposing America's children to massive health and safety risks.
Oh for the days when children were our priority!
1 comment:
Well let's belabor the point of QUID PRO QUO, an essential element in the criminal offense of extortion.
The Quid, Trump: Open schools. He has no legal authority to compel schools to open.
The Quo, Trump: Or I will not send you federal money appropriated by Congress for schools.
Which money he is under a legal duty to disperse.
Not only are Trump, Pence, and DeVos willing to risk the health and future of American children (then blame the disaster on Public Schools so they can continue to defund education) they are not hesitant to engage in extortion to get the job done.
Wish Harry Truman were here to tell us all what a sorry bunch of sons of bitches this crowd is.
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