Trump to visit private school to promote school choice

Published 9:17 am Friday, March 3, 2017

WASHINGTON  — President Donald Trump will be visiting a private, religious school in Florida on Friday, signaling that his education agenda will focus on school choice.

The president will tour St. Andrew Catholic School in Orlando, where he is expected to drop in on classrooms, and meet with parents, teachers and administrators, the White House said.

This will be Trump’s first visit to a school since becoming president and it gives a strong indication of where his priorities lie. Teachers unions were quick to criticize the plan, saying it shows Trump’s hostility toward public schools and his intention to turn education into a profit-making industry.

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During a speech to Congress this week, Trump called education “the civil rights issue of our time” and asked legislators to pass a bill that would fund school choice for disadvantaged youth, including minority children. He did not offer any details.

Among his guests at the speech was Denisha Merriweather, who used Florida’s school voucher program to attend a private high school that she credits with turning her life around.