San Diego Unified‘s board president said Monday he is withdrawing his co-sponsorship of a resolution to invite new Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to visit the district.
Richard Barrera cited the “polarizing nature” of President Trump’s nomination of DeVos, an advocate of charter schools, and apologized for moving quickly with a resolution.
“The intention was to help her learn all the things that public schools are doing well,” he said in a statement. “My intention was to challenge her views openly and in a public setting.”
“Given the polarizing nature of the DeVos nomination and confirmation vote, however, it is clear this would be the wrong time to engage the secretary in dialogue,” he added. “I apologize to all of those we excluded from the conversation by moving forward so quickly.”
The board was scheduled to vote on the resolution, which was co-sponsored by Trustee John Lee Evans, at its meeting Tuesday night.
DeVos was considered by many to be one of President Donald Trump’s most controversial cabinet selections because of her lobbying for private school vouchers, charter schools and other public school alternatives.
