Laurie Maldonado: Accountability? DeVos says she believes in it, but doesn’t want it

In response to the letter (“DeVos will shake up public schools,” Letters, Feb. 16) defending Betsy DeVos by implying those pesky teachers’ unions were opposed to her to because she might introduce competition into the school system through vouchers and charters. With respect, it is not competition to which most teachers object; it is the lack of similar accountability and standards in those “choice” schools. Pressed repeatedly during her hearing as to whether she believed non-public schools should be held to the same level of accountability and measured by the same standards as the public schools, DeVos simply refused to answer, saying only (over and over), “I believe in accountability.”

This should not be an acceptable answer for any rational person.

Based on my hard work and creative effort – and if you don’t have a stopwatch – I’m pretty sure I can run a 4-minute mile. And if you work really hard too, but we use a stopwatch with you, I think I will turn in the faster time. These results will clearly show I’m the better runner! Totally equitable, right? Welcome to Betsy’s world.

This story was originally published February 16, 2017 at 4:12 PM with the headline "Laurie Maldonado: Accountability? DeVos says she believes in it, but doesn’t want it."