DeVos Champions Online Charter Schools & Parental Rights, But The Results Are Poor

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DeVos Champions Online Charter Schools & Parental Rights, But The Results Are Poor

US education secretary Betsy DeVos is a big proponent of charter schools, so much so that she and her husband have put their money behind their values and beliefs. Over a decade ago, DeVos invested in junk-bond king Michael Milken-backed online charter-school operator K12, which targeted the growing homeschool market. But K12’s overly expansive business model made it both significantly less profitable and more prone to regulatory and operating deficiencies than smaller, less ideologically driven competitors, wrote The Atlantic prior to Besty Devos' senate confirmation. K12 still trades below its IPO price from 2007 and documents discovered by The Atlantic suggest that DeVos was a backer of Milken's parent company Knowledge Universe, now defunct.

Education Secy Betsy DeVos Announces Plans To Revise Title 9 Sexual Assault On Campus Rules

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Education Secy Betsy DeVos Announces Plans To Revise Title 9 Sexual Assault On Campus Rules

US Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced changes Thursday to an Obama-era directive regarding sexual-assault allegations on campus. Speaking at George Mason University in Virginia, DeVos said “The truth is that the system established by the prior administration has failed too many students." She pledged to replace the “failed system” with a “workable, effective, and fair system” that addresses the needs and rights for both sexual-assault victims and the accused.

“Every survivor of sexual misconduct must be taken seriously. Every student accused of sexual misconduct must know that guilt is not predetermined,” she said.

Leaving the current rules in place for now, DeVos said that a public comment period would open soon, in order to craft new rules. 

“We will seek public feedback and combine institutional knowledge, professional expertise, and the experiences of students to replace the current approach with a workable, effective, and fair system,” DeVos said.