DeVos struggles to answer questions about school choice

Transcript:

• Lesley Stahl: Why take money away from that school that's not working to bring them up to a level where they are — where that school is working?
• Betsy DeVos: Well, we should be funding and investing in students. Not in school — school buildings, not in institutions, not in systems.
• Stahl: Okay, but what about the kids who are back at the school that's not working? What about those kids?
• DeVos: In places where a lot of choice has been introduced — Florida for example — the studies show when there's a large number of students that opt to go to a different school or different schools, the traditional public schools, actually, the results get better as well.
• Stahl Now, has that happened in Michigan? We're in Michigan. This is your home state.
• DeVos: Yes! Well, there's lots of great options and choices for students here.
• Stahl: Have the public schools in Michigan have gotten better?
• DeVos: I don't know, overall, I can't say overall that they have all gotten better.
• Stahl: The whole state is not doing well.
• DeVos: Well, there are certainly lots of pockets where the students are doing well.

• Stahl: Yeah, but your argument that if you take the funds away that the schools will get better is not working in Michigan, where you had a huge impact and influence over the direction of the school system here.
• DeVos: I hesitate to talk about all schools in general because schools are made up of individual students attending them.
• Stahl: The public schools here are doing worse than they did.
• DeVos: Michigan schools need to do better. There is no doubt about it.
• Stahl: Have you seen the really bad schools? Maybe try to figure out what they're doing?
• DeVos: I have not — I have not — I have not intentionally visited schools that are underperforming.
• Stahl: Maybe you should.
• DeVos: Maybe I should, yes.