If taxpayer money were limitless, we wouldn't need a budget at all.
— Betsy DeVos
Assault in any form is never OK, and I want to be very clear on that.
As a mom, I just can't imagine having a child who would feel discriminated against for any reason, and I would want my child in a safe environment.
The faculty, from adjunct professors to deans, tell you what to do, what to say, and more ominously, what to think.
When it comes to education, no solution, not even ones we like, should be dictated or run from Washington, D.C.
Homeschooling represents another perfectly valid educational option.
My faith motivates me to really try to work on behalf of and advocate for those who are least able to advocate for themselves.
We can focus on differences that divide us, or we can choose to listen and learn from each other's experiences.
It could be easy to get frustrated or discouraged when it comes to educating students with disabilities. But that's because there are too often artificial barriers and roadblocks that limit your ability to focus on meeting their individual needs.
Education broadens our horizons and enables us to confront realities we'd never before anticipated.
Let's choose to hear one another out.
If confirmed, I will be a strong advocate for great public schools.
The president has made good on a promise to ensure that the American people are not subject to overreach... and fulfilled a commitment to keep America first and focus on American jobs.
I consider protecting all students, including LGBTQ students, not only a key priority for the Department, but for every school in America.
The older generations are too wedded to political parties, too wedded to romantic memories of what education was like when they were kids, and too wedded to the status quo group that clings to power.
Every child in America deserves to be in a safe environment that is free from discrimination.
Government likes committees... a lot. Committees kill all the really good ideas and generally all the really bad ideas. They produce middle-ground mush.
No child's dream should be limited by the quality, or lack thereof, of the education they receive.
Where conflicts are identified, they will be resolved.
No student should feel like there isn't a way to seek justice, and no student should feel that the scales are tipped against him or her.
Trump's vision continues taking shape.
There isn't really any Common Core any more. Each state is able to set the standards for their state. They may elect to adopt very high standards for their students to aspire to and to work toward. And that will be up to each state.
Above all, I believe every child, no matter their ZIP code or their parents' jobs, deserves access to a quality education.
Just as the traditional taxi system revolted against ride sharing, so too does the education establishment feel threatened by the rise of school choice.
One of the hallmarks of higher education and of democracy is the ability to converse with people with whom we disagree.
We should celebrate the fact that, unlike some countries in the world, the United States makes promises that we will never send any student away from our schools.
We must first listen, then speak - with humility - to genuinely hear the perspectives of those with whom we don't immediately or instinctively agree.
It is necessary and critical for states to have flexibility to determine how to identify and improve schools.
The vast majority of students in this country will continue to attend public schools.
My job isn't to win popularity contests.
At my direction, the Department's Office for Civil Rights remains committed to investigating all claims of discrimination, bullying, and harassment against those who are most vulnerable in our schools.
If you don't live in an area with good public schools, you can move to a different place if you have the financial means to do so.
President-elect Trump and I know it won't be Washington, D.C., that unlocks our nation's potential, nor a bigger bureaucracy, tougher mandates, or a federal agency. The answer is local control and listening to parents, students, and teachers.
Government tends to stifle innovation, and it abhors improvisation. Any good military strategist will tell you that a battle plan rarely survives past the first engagement. After that, you have to improvise to survive and to win.
I look forward to talking about how we can work together to improve educational opportunities and outcomes for all students while also refocusing the federal role in education.
I will not be conflicted. Period. I commit that to you all.
They say that if you voted for Donald Trump, you're a threat to the university community. But the real threat is silencing the First Amendment rights of people with whom you disagree.
We won't accomplish our goals by creating a new federal bureaucracy or by bribing states with their own taxpayers' money.
We've seen more and more people opt for homeschooling, including in urban areas.
If you ask any of my kids today what their most important experience was in their education, they would say it was the travel and the ability to see and be in other cultures.
At what point do we accept the fact that throwing money at the problem isn't the solution?
I can now video chat with my grandkids from any corner of the world, listen to music, or order food and have it delivered to my front door.
As we know, lots of people working together to solve problems doesn't happen often enough, particularly here in Washington.
The natural instinct is to join in the chorus of conflict, to make your voice louder, your point bigger, and your position stronger. But we will not solve the significant and real problems our country faces if we cannot bring ourselves to embrace a mindset of grace.
I'm proud to stand beside you as a partner and support Special Olympics - an important program that promotes leadership and empowers students to be agents of change.
We, as a society, will benefit from the interest young people show beginning at first, second, and third grades. As a result, there's great promise in the future.
The media has had its fun with me.
If we can manage to break free, to open the system and embrace all choices for education, we will be the first to give politicians awards to hang on their office walls.
If a parent chooses to go to a school that is not a public school, then that is a decision made and a contract made with that provider.
If you can't get cell phone service in your living room, then your particular provider is failing you. You should have the option to find a network that does work.
