Why is Rep. Scholten celebrating a DeVos created charter school?

Recently, Rep. Hillary Scholten posted a picture of herself in front of the West Michigan Aviation Academy, which is located next to the Gerald R. Ford Airport. 

The photo of Scholten in front of the DeVos created school is accompanied by these words: 

“At a time when aviation professionals are needed more than ever, the West Michigan Aviation Academy is a huge asset to our community and our nation. It’s a launching pad for high schoolers interested in the aviation field, allowing them to SOAR to new heights. Always great to pay a visit to the students and instructors there!”

Some people might say that since Scholten is on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure she should meet with institutions that are connected to transportation. This would be nothing more than a weak apologetic argument that doesn’t reflect the real context in this case.

Dick DeVos created the West Michigan Aviation Academy in 2010. Dick and Betsy DeVos have been at the forefront of the anti-public education movement for more than four decades. They both embraced the Heritage Foundation’s effort to undermine the public school system, which began during the Reagan years.

In 2000, Betsy DeVos led a campaign to put the issue of school vouchers on the ballot in Michigan. That ballot initiative failed, but DeVos did not give up. Betsy made the decision to diversify the kind of tactics that the so-called School Choice movement would use in the years to come. These tactics included financially backing candidates at the state and federal level, candidates who would push for an anti-public education platform, creating new anti-public education front groups like the Great Lakes Education Project and attacking teacher unions across the country. 

This is why it is so egregious for Rep. Scholten to engage in a photo op in front of the West Michigan Aviation Academy. Scholten knows exactly who runs and funds this school, which is the same family that has helped get Donald Trump and other Republicans like him elected to office locally, across Michigan and at the federal level. 

Lastly, where was Rep. Scholten in recent weeks when the teachers from the Grand Rapids Public Schools were showing up in big numbers to demand better pay? Rep. Scholten didn’t show up for public school teachers in Grand Rapids, she chose to engage in a photo op at a charter school created by the DeVos family.