DES MOINES, IOWA (March 15, 2019) — “Recent headlines that the wealthiest in our country stole seats in college from students who earned those seats is another example of what is so wrong with [Education] Secretary Betsy DeVos’s voucher plan," Mike Beranek, President of The Iowa State Education Association (ISEA), said. "We hope that in their conversation today, Governor [Kim] Reynolds chooses not to focus on the Education Freedom Scholarships but focuses instead on the nearly 500,000 students across our state who are served in our public schools.
"Our hope is that they are discussing how all of our students deservemodern textbooks, access to art and music courses, school nurses and counselors, and class sizes small enough for one-on-one attention. Iowa’s educators are on the frontlines of a mental-health crisis going on in our public schools every day. We hope that is in the conversation. The federal government has never fully-funded special-education supports. We hope that is in the conversation.
"Utilizing this rare opportunity to have a real conversation with the Secretary of Education about the critical issues facing our public education system would demonstrate a commitment to Iowa’s students. Instead, it appears the Governor and the Secretary of Education are prioritizing a closed door discussion about a voucher tax credit scheme.
"Sec DeVos and Gov Reynolds must understand that government has a responsibility to provide a great neighborhood public school for every student regardless of ZIP code and that improving our public schools should be the top priority.”
The ISEA represents preK-12 educators, education support professionals, community college faculty, Area Education Agency professionals, retired educators, and aspiring educators with contracts covering more than 50,000 employees. We promote quality public education by placing students at the center of everything we do while advocating for education professionals.
