Trump campaign vs. Trump administration: on Education

Ben Carson: Education has power to lift families out of destitution

Betsy DeVos: 250,000 students in 33 voucher programs, and growing

DEVOS: Well, I've never been more optimistic. Today there are about 250,000 students in 33 publicly funded, private-choice programs in 17 states and the District of Columbia. The movement's growth is accelerating. Within the last year, the number of students in educational-choice programs grew by about 40,000. In 2012, we saw new programs in LA, PA, VA, and NH, and expanded programs in AZ, FL, LA, and OH. In 2011, Indiana passed a major new statewide voucher program, which is only in its second academic year and is already enrolling nearly 10,000 children. We conducted polling in 5 states, and found educational choice enjoyed enormous popularity, especially among Latinos.

Betsy DeVos: Got 5,000 voucher students enrolled in Louisiana in one week

DEVOS: I don't want to get too deep into the weeds, but here's an episode that may be revealing. Back in 2008, in Louisiana, the state's Department of Education was clearly opposed to implementing the new pilot voucher program that had been created by Gov. Jindal and a bipartisan coalition of legislators to help children trapped in failing schools in New Orleans. The department at that time seemed to put up as many roadblocks as possible. They gave parents one week--one week!--to sign up for the program. We had to work fast to come up with creative ways to alert parents of the new program. We did everything we could to engage and inform parents about the voucher opportunity. We bought ad time on urban radio stations. We bought billboards and web ads, did mailings and phone calls. We worked with various parish churches. It was all grassroots work. It can look like tedious work, but we got 5,000 children enrolled.

Betsy DeVos: Charters fulfill a different choice & supplement vouchers

DEVOS: Charter schools are another choice--a very valid choice. As we work to help provide parents with more educational choices, it is always with the assumption that charter schools are part of the equation. We think of the educational choice movement as involving many parts: vouchers and tax credits, certainly, but also virtual schools, magnet schools, homeschooling, and charter schools.

PHILANTHROPY: Do you worry that the relative popularity of charter schools is endangering the rest of your reform agenda? These days, it's fairly safe to voice support for charter schools. Does that diminish the appeal of other reforms, like vouchers and tax credits?

DEVOS: Charter schools take a while to start up and get operating. Believe me, I know, because we started one. Meanwhile, there are very good non-public schools, hanging on by a shoestring, that can begin taking students today.

Betsy DeVos: Federally-funded vouchers for public or private schools

Throughout her time as an education activist, DeVos has been a proponent of school vouchers, which redirect the state per-pupil education funding, giving it directly to individual families instead of school districts. Families can then select the public or private schools of their choice and have all or part of the tuition paid by the government. Of vouchers, DeVos said, "I would hope I could convince you all of the merit of that in maybe some future legislation."

Betsy DeVos: Nothing is free; someone has to pay for "free tuition"

When questioned by Bernie Sanders (D-VT) on making public colleges tuition free, DeVos said, "That's a really interesting idea. But we also have to consider the fact that there's nothing in life that is truly free. Somebody's going to pay for it. I think we can work together and we can work hard on making sure that college or higher education in some form is affordable for all young people that want to pursue it."

Betsy DeVos: No longer believe in one-size-fits-all model of learning

Sen. PATTY MURRAY (D-WA): Can you commit to us tonight that you will not work to privatize public schools or cut a single penny from public education?

DeVOS: I look forward to working with you to talk about how we address the needs of all parents and all students. And we acknowledge today that not all schools are working for the students that are assigned to them. And I'm hopeful that we can work together to find common ground and ways that we can solve those issues and empower parents to make choices on behalf of their children that are right for them.

MURRAY: I take that as not being willing to commit to not privatizing public schools or cutting money from education?

DeVOS: I guess I wouldn't characterize it in that way.

Betsy DeVos: Schools need equal opportunities, not affirmative action

"While the law is clear and unchanged--that diversity is a compelling government interest that permits race conscious admission--retracting this guidance will make it more challenging for school districts and colleges to understand your Departments' enforcement of the law to ensure the institution is in compliance," the 21 senators wrote.

An Education Department press secretary responded in a statement without directly addressing the senators' questions: "As the Secretary has said, the Supreme Court has determined what affirmative action policies are Constitutional, and the Court's written decisions are the best guide for navigating this complex issue," Hill said. "Schools should continue to offer equal opportunities for all students while abiding by the law."

Betsy DeVos: Obama campus sexual assault standard was ineffective mandate

"One sexual assault is one too many. It is horrible and lamentable," DeVos said. "But the current failed system didn't work for students, it didn't work for institutions, it didn't work for anyone," she said in explaining the decision. "It didn't work because unelected and unaccountable political appointees pushed the guidance through without any period for comment from those who walk side by side with students every day. The time of ineffective and inefficient mandates is over."

Betsy DeVos: No free money: don't forgive loans from bankrupt colleges

DeVos was highly critical of the program, reportedly calling it a "free money" giveaway, and sought to change and delay the program. However, she was sued, and a federal judge ruled in September the program needed to "go into effect."

Those eligible for loan forgiveness must have been enrolled at the school when it closed and not enrolled at another Title-IV school within three years of the previous school's closing.

So far, about 15,000 people have been flagged by the Education Department as eligible. About $80 million of the $150 million debt is attributed to the now-defunct Corinthian schools.

Dianne Feinstein: Foster educational inclusion as America grows more diverse

"While the law is clear and unchanged--that diversity is a compelling government interest that permits race conscious admission--retracting this guidance will make it more challenging for school districts and colleges to understand your Departments' enforcement of the law to ensure the institution is in compliance," the 21 senators wrote, led by Patty Murray & Dianne Feinstein.

They continued: "As our country continues to grow more diverse, we need policies that foster diversity and inclusion, not suppress them." The information the Democrats want include who Sessions and DeVos consulted before making the decision to revoke the guidance and a list of the complaints of discrimination based on race or ethnicity from schools closed by the Department of Education.

Donald Trump: Skeptical of use of affirmative action in college admissions

The action demonstrated anew the administration's deep skepticism of affirmative action in education. Under President Barack Obama, the Justice Department had made legal arguments in support of how colleges use race in admissions.

The Justice Department concluded: that Harvard has failed to explain exactly how it weighs race against other factors in an application; that Harvard uses a "personal rating" that may be biased against Asian Americans; and that "substantial evidence" indicates admissions officers monitor and manipulate the racial makeup of incoming classes, despite court rulings that have found "racial balancing" unconstitutional.

Jeff Sessions: Harvard misuses affirmative action in college admissions

With a legal brief filed in federal court in Boston, the department weighed in on a closely watched lawsuit challenging Harvard's use of race and ethnicity in admissions, alleging that the university is biased against Asian-Americans. The Justice Department's brief argues that that Harvard has failed to show it does not unlawfully discriminate against Asian-Americans.

"No American should be denied admission to school because of their race," Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement. "As a recipient of taxpayer dollars, Harvard has a responsibility to conduct its admissions policy without racial discrimination by using meaningful admissions criteria that meet lawful requirements."

Jeff Sessions: Rescind Obama-era guidance on achieving diversity in schools

Responding to a letter from 21 Senate Democrats criticizing the action, a Justice Department spokeswoman said the "executive branch cannot circumvent Congress or the courts by creating guidance that goes beyond the law and--in some instances--stays on the books for decades."

"Last year, the Attorney General initiated a review of guidance documents, which resulted in dozens of examples --including July's second tranche of rescissions--of documents that go beyond or are inconsistent with the Constitution and federal law," a Justice Dept. statement said. "The Justice Department remains committed to enforcing the law and protecting all Americans from all forms of illegal race-based discrimination."

Lamar Alexander: Don't forgive loans from bankrupt colleges, with exceptions

[After a lawsuit], about 15,000 people have been flagged by the Education Department as eligible. About $80 million of the $150 million debt is attributed to the now-defunct Corinthian schools. Those eligible for loan forgiveness must have been enrolled at the school when it closed and not enrolled at another Title-IV school within three years.

Sen. Lamar Alexander, the Education Committee chair, previously argued the "Obama administration went too far in rewriting this provision by setting overly broad and vague standards and as a result, put taxpayers on the hook for too many loans."

Patty Murray: Foster educational inclusion as America grows more diverse

"While the law is clear and unchanged--that diversity is a compelling government interest that permits race conscious admission--retracting this guidance will make it more challenging for school districts and colleges to understand your Departments' enforcement of the law to ensure the institution is in compliance," the 21 senators wrote, led by Patty Murray & Dianne Feinstein.

They continued: "As our country continues to grow more diverse, we need policies that foster diversity and inclusion, not suppress them." The information the Democrats want include who Sessions and DeVos consulted before making the decision to revoke the guidance and a list of the complaints of discrimination based on race or ethnicity from schools closed by the Department of Education.

Patty Murray: Forgive student loans if college goes bankrupt

[After a lawsuit], about 15,000 people have been flagged by the Education Department as eligible. About $80 million of the $150 million debt is attributed to the now-defunct Corinthian schools.

"This is a good first step, but it's not good enough," said Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Education Committee. She called on DeVos to "abandon her attempts to rewrite the borrower defense rule to let for-profit colleges off the hook and instead fully implement the current rule and provide relief to more than 100,000 borrowers who were cheated out of their education and savings."