Republican Assault on Public Education (2 Viewers)

[MT15]

This probably needs its own thread. It ties in with a lot of different R culture wars: Attacks on universities, attacks on CRT and “woke”. Classifying teachers and librarians as “groomers”. Pushing vouchers to send tax money to private, often religious, schools. Betsy DeVos was an advocate for all these policies that will weaken public education, and there are several billionaires who also want to dismantle public education. Public education may have its faults, but it is responsible for an amazing amount of upward mobility. Kids from poor areas can still get a college prep education in a public school.

Vouchers (sometimes disguised as “school choice”) are a particular peeve of mine. Public money is diverted from poor schools to wealthy private schools, which aren’t required to offer accommodations for special needs or challenged students. Families with special needs kids are left out. Rural areas often suffer disproportionately because there are no private schools to attend, but their public schools still see the reduction in funding. Often the families who take advantage of the voucher money are upper class and the private schools simply raise tuition knowing the families are getting taxpayer money now.

Greg Abbot is being particularly vile in this area. No surprise. Voters will have to make a statement about public education. If we want to halt the growing divide in this country between the “haves” and “have-nots”, we need to pay attention to public education.

 

[MT15]

Something tells me they aren't interested in reports of discrimination against minorities in school
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The Department of Education is teaming up with the far-right activist group Moms for Liberty, launching a portal Thursday where parents can submit tips to the department to investigate as part of the crusade to end diversity and inclusion efforts in schools.

In a press release, the department announced it was launching the portal so that anyone can “submit reports of discrimination based on race or sex in publicly-funded K-12 schools,” which the department would then use as a guide “to identify potential areas for investigation.”

The press release included a statement from Tiffany Justice, a co-founder of Moms for Liberty and Heritage Foundation employee. Justice claimed that “parents have been begging schools to focus on teaching their kids practical skills like reading, writing, and math, instead of pushing critical theory, rogue sex education and divisive ideologies — but their concerns have been brushed off, mocked, or shut down entirely.”

Justice, who heads an organization whose members have been accused of waging harassment campaigns and repeatedly rebuked in school board elections, went on to say: “This webpage demonstrates that President Trump’s Department of Education is putting power back in the hands of parents.”.......................

Moms for Liberty, Education Department launch program to report teachers who promote diversity

The department has created a tip line for people to report schools accused of promoting DEI policies

www.salon.com

People should flood it with actual reports of discrimination and abuse. Not the fake kind they want to pretend exists.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Guess this can go here
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(CNN) — As President Donald Trump prepares to order the dismantling of the Department of Education, the financial arm of the agency – which makes loans directly to borrowers and manages trillions of dollars in student debt – faces an uncertain future, with steep staff cuts and lack of communication exacerbating the uncertainty, according to interviews with more than a dozen current and former department employees.

The $1.64 trillion financial portfolio is managed separately from the department’s policy apparatus, the latter of which Trump has sought to wind down or reassign to other agencies. But Trump acknowledged Thursday that the massive loan balance was a complicating factor in his effort to shutter the agency.

“We’ve actually had that discussion today,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, suggesting that the debt could land at Treasury, Commerce, or the Small Business Administration. He said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler “would really like to do it.”

And then there is the question of whether the government will stay in the business of lending money to students directly……

In Project 2025’s vision, old loans should be moved to the Treasury Department, which would manage defaults and collections.

How Treasury would manage the portfolio is unclear. Roughly 40% of the loans are currently delinquent, or behind in payment, according to people familiar with the data; after 90 days, the missed payments are reported on a borrower’s credit report, and after 270 days without payment, the loan officially goes into default.

Experts warn that an avalanche of new defaults could be approaching as borrowers come to terms with the end of a multi-year pause on loan payments and changes to more affordable payment programs.

“It’s a tidal wave coming for an unprepared village,” said one former senior Education Department employee who departed recently. “The fallout is not even hypothetical now.”………

Dismantling of Education Department puts future of trillions of dollars in student loans in question | CNN Politics

As President Donald Trump prepares to order the dismantling of the Department of Education, the financial arm of the agency – which makes loans directly to borrowers and manages trillions of dollars in student debt – faces an uncertain future, with steep staff cuts and lack of communication...

www.cnn.com