The nomination of billionaire Linda McMahon—a retired wrestling industry executive with no teaching experience—to serve as U.S. Secretary of Education represents a reckless shift in our nation’s education priorities.
McMahon’s objective will likely be to dismantle the very agency she has been tapped to oversee: the U.S. Department of Education, which takes a lead role in providing equal access to education, protecting the rights of students and educators, and ensuring American students—particularly those with disabilities and those in high-poverty areas—receive the support and resources they need. The incoming administration’s agenda puts a long list of protections at risk. These include students’ civil rights, special education services, reasonable class sizes, job training programs, and resources for our most vulnerable students.
This is unacceptable and cruel.
Like Betsy DeVos, McMahon has voiced support for corporate-run charter schools and voucher schemes that funnel taxpayer dollars from public schools—where 90% of students (and 95% of students with disabilities) learn—over to private schools that discriminate and operate without accountability or transparency.
In a time of increasing threats not only against our public schools broadly, as well as against LGBTQ+ students, immigrant communities, and others specifically, CEA remains steadfast in its commitment to ensuring every child has the resources to succeed and that our public schools are safe, supportive, welcoming environments for all. Parents and educators are partners in this effort.
We urge the Senate to reject Linda McMahon’s appointment; our students deserve better.
