U.S. Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, is a despised figure among public educators. Even in South Carolina, the redneck riviera, an anonymous source of mine reveals that DeVos was rejected by the only public high school in Mount Pleasant.
The revealed purpose for the secretary’s first visit to the state is apparently to hold roundtable discussions with teachers. It is probably a step in the right direction considering U.S. News and World Report ranked the palmetto republic’s education 50th in the country. DeVos has been working tirelessly with President Trump to address this issue by trying to cut as much money from the education budget as possible.
DeVos did not inform the SC Department of Education of her visit, and instead contacted schools directly. SC schools are allowed a good deal of autonomy when it comes to organizing events. Her first choice was Wando High School. However, they didn’t roll out the red carpet for her, but instead, their principle, Dr. Eppelsheimer, gave her the cold shoulder.
Educators at Wando are not her biggest fan, and one teacher, chosen for the roundtable, was “jumping at the opportunity.” She was eager to “educate her on the current state of education in this country,” but lamented that she “will probably be unsuccessful.” In the end, Dr. Eppelsheimer turned down the secretary’s visit, also likely concerned with drawing a large protest.
As a backup option, DeVos choose Laing Middle School, also in Mount Pleasant, which accepted her request. She plans on visiting the school on September 11th. The other schools on her tour have not been revealed, and the topics of discussion are being withheld as well.