DeVos Unlikely to Have Big Impact on NYC Schools, TC’s Rebell Tells DNAInfo | Teachers College Columbia University

Skip to content Skip to main navigation
Skip to content Skip to content
Filed Under > Quoted & Noted

DeVos Unlikely to Have Big Impact on NYC Schools, TC’s Rebell Tells DNAInfo

Michael Rebell, Professor of Law & Educational Practice, and Executive Director of The Campaign for Educational Equity
Michael Rebell, Professor of Law & Educational Practice, and Executive Director of The Campaign for Educational Equity
TC’s Michael Rebell, Professor of Law and Educational Practice and Executive Director of the Campaign for Educational Equity, tells the DNAInfo online news site that, while many people are concerned about Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos’s potential impact on school funding, she might not have much of an impact on New York City schools.

DeVos and the federal Department of Education will likely support privatization of education and push for vouchers and charter schools, Rebell notes. But “to compel virtually anything, they can only do it through [federal] funding,” which represents only 10 percent of the city's education budget.

Most federal funds come from two programs: Title I funding to help schools with economically disadvantaged students, and funding under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Rebell says IDEA funding enjoys bipartisan support and is unlikely to be cut, and changes in Title I formulas would require Congressional action—also unlikely.

Moreover, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), passed last year, reduced the role of the federal government in local and state education, and Congress is unlikely to change it, Rebell says. And the majority-Republican Congress is unlikely to fund President Trump’s proposed $20 billion federal voucher plan. 

To read the full story, go here.

Published Thursday, Feb 16, 2017