DETROIT – Education Secretary Betsy DeVos returned to her home state and paid a visit to Detroit Friday.
She attended the national championships for high school robotics at Cobo Hall to promote STEM fields.
DeVos was all smiles at the robotics competition as she met young students from Ann Arbor. She spoke of the importance of STEM and access to education, but when Local 4 asked if she had plans to visit any Detroit public schools, some of which are within walking distance of Cobo, the secretary of education said she wasn't visiting any schools that day.
When followed up and asked about struggling schools in Michigan, her handlers ended the conversation.
This comes after a "60 Minutes" interview in March during which DeVos said since taking on the responsibilities of the education secretary, she had not visited underperforming schools.
"It's a lot of things that probably hindered her from coming, but she's here now," said Lamar Stinson, a parent of a DPSCD student. "Let's see what happens."
Stinson acknowledged it might help kids if the education secretary knew what some students were up against in underperforming districts.
"You got a lot of struggling school, they're closing schools, they're tearing down schools," Stinson said. "We don't need that right now. Our kids need to be educated."