[7], DeVos is married to former Amway CEO Dick DeVos. . What the Final Title IX Rule Do. [64][65] DeVos drew widespread media attention during the confirmation hearings for suggesting that guns might have a place in some schools due to a threat from grizzly bears. She grew up in Holland, Michigan, the eldest of four children born to Elsa (Zwiep) Prince (later, Broekhuizen) and Edgar Prince, a billionaire industrialist. In 2008, All Children Matter was fined $5.2 million in Ohio for illegally laundering money into political campaign funds. Dick's father, Richard Marvin DeVos Sr., co-founded Amway and was the owner of the Orlando Magic NBA basketball team. [91], In February 2017, DeVos released a statement calling historically black colleges "real pioneers when it comes to school choice", causing controversy as some pointed out the schools originated after segregation laws prevented African-Americans from attending others. [137] In 2015, the DeVos Foundation made $11.6 million in charitable contributions, bringing the couple's lifetime charitable giving to $139 million. Betsy DeVos, original name Elisabeth Dee Prince, (born January 8, 1958, Holland, Michigan, U.S.), American philanthropist and Republican political activist who served as the secretary of the U.S. Department of Education (2017–21) in the administration of Pres. To fulfill vows of debt-free graduation and better education system, Donald Trump nominated radical Betsy DeVos to lead the education department of the United States. DeVos announced that she would step down from the company's board but would retain her investment in the company, valued at $5 million to $25 million. In response to that defeat, DeVos started a PAC, the Great Lakes Education Project, which championed charter schools. The Real Betsy DeVos: Background Information BETSY DEVOS LACKS EXPERIENCE WITH PUBLIC SCHOOLS: DeVos’ children did not attend public school. [162] DeVos and her husband gave millions of dollars to the organization. Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Betsy-DeVos, U.S. Department of Education - Biography of Betsy DeVos. Betsy DeVos. She and her husband started (2003) a political action committee, All Children Matter, in support of voucher programs. [78] As expected, there was a 50–50 tie on the final vote, with all Democrats and independents, along with two Republicans (Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski), voting in opposition to DeVos, while the other fifty Republican senators voted in support of the confirmation, including Senator Jeff Sessions, who himself had been nominated by the Trump administration for the post of United States attorney general. DeVos also appointed Julian Schmoke as the team's new supervisor; Schmoke was a former dean of DeVry Education Group, which was one of the institutions the team had been investigating. She is the former chair of both the American Federation for Children and The Philanthropy Roundtable board of directors and served on a number of other national and local boards including ArtPrize, American Enterprise Institute, Foundation for Excellence in Education, and the DeVos Institute for Arts Management at the University of Maryland. [123] The following day, the U.S. [72] More than 300 state lawmakers from across the U.S., overwhelmingly Democrats, voiced their opposition to DeVos's appointment in a letter to the U.S. Senate sent the day before a scheduled vote on her nomination. DeVos is a graduate of Holland Christian High School, and has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Calvin College in Gra… President-elect Donald Trump has selected billionaire philanthropist Betsy DeVos, a relatively unknown figure on the national scene, to head the U.S. Department of Education. She has also fostered new educational opportunities locally in West Michigan. [3], DeVos believes education in the United States should encourage the proliferation of charter schools and open up private schools to more students via financial assistance programs, often called vouchers. Since there was a tie, Vice President Mike Pence had to step in to decide the vote as the president of the Senate. The protesters physically blocked her from entering through the back entrance of Jefferson Academy, a D.C. public middle school in Southwest, Washington, D.C. DeVos was eventually able to enter the school through a side entrance. According to DeVos's 2018 financial disclosure form certified by the Office of Government Ethics on December 3, 2018,[126] she had not divested from twenty-four assets required under her signed ethics agreement[127] nearly 22 months after being confirmed in February 2017. Politics. On January 7, 2021, DeVos tendered her resignation as education secretary as a result of the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol, saying to President Trump in her resignation letter, "There is no mistaking the impact your rhetoric had on the situation. Stahl added, "The public schools here are doing worse than they did." Alexander led a bipartisan effort to get ESSA passed, helping a desperate country leave behind the long-expired No Child Left Behind. 28,212 likes. [3][4] In an interview that year, she also said that "changing the way we approach ... the system of education in the country ... really may have greater Kingdom gain in the long run". Jennifer] Granholm's 16 months in office," and said that if DeVos was not Granholm's "worst nightmare," she was "certainly her most persistent". [105] On July 12, 2020, she said "there’s nothing in the data that suggests that kids being in school is in any way dangerous to them", an assertion that public health experts disputed. Damage ensued, WHY DOES BETSY DEVOS'S FAMILY YACHT FLY A FOREIGN FLAG? [22][23], DeVos was educated at the Holland Christian High School, a private school located in her home town of Holland, Michigan. [11][12] In 2016, the family was listed by Forbes as the 88th-richest in America, with an estimated net worth of $5.4 billion. Mike Pence casting the tie-breaking vote. The cartoon centrally depicts Betsy DeVos, the United States Secretary of Education in the Trump Administration.The political cartoon is thematically based on the 1964 painting The Problem We All Live With by Norman Rockwell, and attracted critical commentary in mainstream media. Opponents also objected to her advocacy for school choice, arguing that such policies took resources away from public schools and that charter schools had not been shown to outperform public schools, notably in Michigan, where a majority of charter schools were run by for-profit companies. [32][33] In 2004, the Lansing State Journal described DeVos as "a political pit bull for most of [Gov. [8][9] Her brother, Erik Prince, a former U.S. Navy SEAL officer, is the founder of Blackwater USA. [140][142], In 2016 the Foundation reported $14.3 million in donations to over 100 organizations including the X Prize Foundation, Mars Hill Bible Church, American Enterprise Institute. [193] The 163-foot-long (50 m) vessel is one of ten yachts owned by her family, which has a net worth of $5.3 billion. DeVos provided examples of several charter schools that she said had 4-year graduation exceeding 90%. Betsy DeVos isn't the only education secretary with a lack of traditional public school experience. Background on Betsy Devos. [82] He cast his tie-breaking vote in favor of DeVos to officially confirm her as education secretary. [27] She has been a member and elder of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids. Many of those security personnel are former Secret Service agents who have worked at the department for many years. [172], DeVos has been an advocate for the Detroit charter school system. [90] Two years later, Venable joined an anti-Trump group, the Republican Political Alliance for Integrity and Reform (REPAIR), which is led by former White House officials. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Dick DeVos is a major donor to conservative political campaigns and social causes, and was the 2006 Republican nominee for Governor of Michigan. "[182], The DeVos family is one of Michigan's wealthiest. [92], On March 24, 2017, during a visit to the Osceola County campus of Valencia College, DeVos said she was considering the extension of federal financial aid for students that were year-round and interested in placing more focus on community colleges. [66][67][68] DeVos's comment was later lampooned by television personalities Kate McKinnon on Saturday Night Live, Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert and James Corden. Regarding the withdrawal of the department's team, former Education Secretary Arne Duncan said, "That's a waste of taxpayer money. Her father, Edgar Prince, was a wealthy industrialist who, with her mother, formed a foundation to make donations to such conservative Christian organizations as the Family Research Council and Focus on the Family. I have been a fighter for the grassroots, and following is admittedly not my strong suit. 1 DeVos did not … [129], In September 2020, it was reported that the Office of the Special Counsel had investigated DeVos over potential violations of the Hatch Act after she appeared on Fox News during the 2020 election campaign, where she attacked Democratic Party presidential nominee Joe Biden. It's a monopoly, a dead end. U.S. Supreme Court hands Betsy DeVos a win in her war on public … I mean, and it all started at her confirmation hearing. [58][59] Republican senator Ben Sasse said DeVos "has made a career out of standing up to powerful and connected special interests on behalf of poor kids who are too often forgotten by Washington". As secretary, she decreased the department’s staff and cut numerous regulations, notably in the area of civil rights protections. Given that ESSA goes into effect long after the Obama administration is gone (it will go into effect next school year), the support of one of its major champions is a good sign. [79][80][81] Betsy and Dick DeVos did not send any of their four children to the local public schools, even though their local public schools are highly ranked. [120][121][122], Subsequent to the incident, the U.S. [151] The DeVoses' gift, part of which would be spent on arts groups in Michigan that had been hit hard by the recession, was the largest private donation in the Kennedy Center's history. Meet Betsy DeVos, Trump’s Secretary of Education Nominee The nomination of Betsy DeVos as secretary of education inspired an Internet meme detailing her alleged lack of qualifications for the job. [165] The fine remained unpaid as of 2017[update], prompting calls by Democratic Party lawmakers for DeVos to settle the debt. The Windiest group was founded by DeVos and her husband in 1989. [106], On June 2, 2017, DeVos announced her support of President Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement the prior day. [26][23], DeVos grew up as a member of the Christian Reformed Church in North America. [157], DeVos in 2001 listed education activism and reform efforts as a means to "advance God's Kingdom". The couple later founded (1989) the Windquest Group, a private investment company. She was touring an area designed to resemble a hospital ward at Florida International University. [56][57] Rebecca Mead of The New Yorker questioned the efficacy of Michigan's charter school system, which DeVos has supported. The DeVoses' gift was intended to remedy this oversight. Betsy DeVos' Missing Education Degree. [171], During the 1990s, she served on the boards of Children First America and the American Education Reform Council, which sought to expand school choice through vouchers and tax credits. The outgoing Education Secretary warned that putting someone with a “pro-education bias” in her job would be like “naming a fox to be Secretary of Hens.” [96], In a May 2017 House of Representatives committee hearing, Rep. Katherine Clark, said an Indiana private school which takes publicly funded vouchers maintains it is entitled to deny admission to LGBTQ students or those coming from families with "homosexual or bisexual activity." She and her husband worked for the successful passage of Michigan's first charter-school bill in 1993,[24] and for the unsuccessful effort in 2000 to amend Michigan's constitution to allow tax-credit scholarships or vouchers. Education Department officials declined requests for information about the deployment of marshals or the current tasks of the Secretary's displaced security team normally assigned to her. In 2010 she helped found the American Federation for Children, a lobbying and advocacy organization in favour of school choice, and she sat on the boards of several school-choice advocacy organizations. "[14] DeVos's nomination was generally criticized by teachers unions and praised by supporters of school choice. [118], In 2019, DeVos unsuccessfully attempted to cut federal funding for the Special Olympics from her department's budget, which she had also attempted to cut in her previous two annual budgets. [104], DeVos pushed for schools to re-open while coronavirus cases were still surging in large parts of the country. A federal judge has tacitly threatened Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos with jail for her ongoing failure (or refusal) to comply with court orders in a student loan case. Meet Betsy DeVos, Trump’s Secretary of Education Nominee The nomination of Betsy DeVos as secretary of education inspired an Internet meme … In the National Assessment of Educational Progress, Detroit had the lowest reading and mathematics scores "by far" over any city participating in the evaluation. Betsy, who had campaigned for Pres. with a double major in Spanish and in theatre arts from Ripon College. The show ran for three weeks, closing in December 2012[44] after receiving negative reviews. The cartoon centrally depicts Betsy DeVos, the United States Secretary of Education in the Trump Administration.The political cartoon is thematically based on the 1964 painting The Problem We All Live With by Norman Rockwell, and attracted critical commentary in mainstream media. A B.A. [69][70][71], Prior to DeVos's confirmation, numerous U.S. senators from both parties reported tens of thousands of their constituents having contacted their offices in opposition to the confirmation of DeVos. Betsy DeVos has no experience in the inner workings of a school or a business, and certainly not an organization that wants to be both. "[174] Also defending DeVos's record in Michigan, Jay P. Greene, professor of education policy at the University of Arkansas, argued that Harris's The New York Times article misled readers on the evidence and "falsely claimed that Detroit has failed to close failing charter schools", noting that Detroit has closed more charters than Louisiana, a state Harris cites as a model for charter school legislation. [150][151] The couple donated $22.5 million in 2010 to continue the endeavor, which was given in the name of the DeVos Institute of Arts Management. Photographic prints are the perfect choice for self-framing or adding to a portfolio. [94] She stated an interest in implementing choice policies directed toward children as individuals and criticizing the Obama administration's additional funding of $7 billion for the U.S.'s worst-performing schools as "throwing money at the problem" in an attempt to find a solution. “She was just not the right messenger,” he said. [45][46], Betsy and her husband Dick are chief investors in and board members of Neurocore, a group of brain performance centers offering biofeedback therapy for disorders such as depression, attention deficit disorder, autism, and anxiety. Project Clarity. She has stated that education is "a closed system, a closed industry, a closed market. In 2017, she became the 11th US Secretary of Education. "[19] Her resignation took effect on January 8, 2021, twelve days before her term would have ended. WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 07: Education Secretary Betsy DeVos participates in an event hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump with students, teachers and administrators about how to safely re-open schools during the novel coronavirus pandemic in the East Room at the White House July 07, 2020 in Washington, DC. She said in her letter to President Trump that the riots had overshadowed the accomplishments of his administration. While she was on the board, she and her husband funded a center to teach arts managers and boards of directors how to fundraise and manage their cultural institutions. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos submitted her resignation on Thursday after she believed that it would not be possible to remove President … West Michigan Aviation Academy. [150][151], After the announcement of the DeVoses' gift to the Kennedy Center, DeVos explained that she had been persuaded by Kennedy Center official Michael Kaiser's observation that millions of dollars are invested "in the arts, and training artists", but not in "training the leaders who hire the artists and run the organizations". Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. After her television appearance, the Department of Education promoted her Fox News interview. "We want to help develop human capital and leverage that capital to the greatest extent possible", she said, describing Kaiser's "practice and approach" as "practical, realistic and creative". On January 8, 2021, shortly before the end of Trump’s presidency—he lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden—DeVos resigned. That same year she married Richard (Dick) DeVos, Jr., son of the cofounder of the multilevel marketing company Amway. [30] She was a Republican National Committeewoman for Michigan between 1992 and 1997,[31] and served as chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party from 1996 to 2000. DeVos and her husband, Dick, have four children and five grandchildren. DeVos answered: "Well again, the Office of Civil Rights and our Title IX protections are broadly applicable across the board, but when it comes to parents making choices on behalf of their students..." Clark stopped her saying, "This isn't about parents making choices, this is about the use of federal dollars. [195][196], 11th United States Secretary of Education, Benjamin Wermund and Kimberly Hefling (November 25, 2016). [25] During college, DeVos was involved with campus politics, volunteered for Gerald Ford's presidential campaign, and attended the 1976 Republican National Convention to participate in a program for young Republicans. Douglas N. Harris, professor of economics at Tulane University, wrote in a 2016 The New York Times op-ed that DeVos was partly responsible for "what even charter advocates acknowledge is the biggest school reform disaster in the country". In March 2016, DeVos described Donald Trump as an "interloper" and said that he "does not represent the Republican Party". [178] In the same month, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon parodied the Education Department's typos on Twitter, featuring Jo Firestone as DeVos. [20][21] Edgar was the founder of Prince Corporation, an automobile parts supplier based in Holland, Michigan. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. [115], In March 2018, DeVos announced a School Safety Commission, to provide meaningful and actionable recommendations. [166][167], Her other activities on behalf of public-school reform have included membership on the boards of directors of the Advocates for School Choice, the American Education Reform Council, and the Education Freedom Fund. Alex Wong/Getty Images.