Protesters blocked Education Secretary Betsy DeVos from entering the Jefferson Middle School Academy in Washington, D.C., on Friday morning during her first visit to a K-12 public school since her swearing-in ceremony Tuesday. A video circulated by a local ABC affiliate showed DeVos attempting to enter the school's side door, only to be physically denied entry by a small group of protesters. DeVos was then ushered back into her government vehicle and driven away, though she ended up entering the school through another door.
Parents and teachers protested at the school Friday, concerned about the billionaire's record of lobbying for private school vouchers and doubting the merits of the public school system. "Betsy DeVos does not represent our students or our families here in D.C.," a D.C. charter school teacher at the protest told The Washington Post. "She doesn't have our best interests at heart."
Vice President Mike Pence was required to step in to cast the tie-breaking vote to confirm DeVos, the first time a vice president has been called on to tip a Cabinet nomination.
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Though this was DeVos' first visit to a K-12 public school, it was not her first school visit as education secretary: On Thursday, she visited Howard University, a historically black college in Washington, D.C.
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