#Education Secretary Betsy DeVos vows students will return to class this fall

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said she intends to have students back in classrooms this fall.

“Parents are expecting that this fall their kids are going to have a full-time experience with their learning, and we need to follow through on that promise,” DeVos told told “Fox News Sunday,” adding that “kids cannot afford to not continue learning.”

She said it’s “not a matter of if” but a “matter of how.”

DeVos said students have already been harmed by not being in school during the spring amid the coronavirus pandemic, and some who have been staying home could be suffering from mental, emotional and social issues.

“They’ve fallen behind this spring, we need to ensure they’re back in a classroom situation wherever possible and whenever possible, and fully functioning, fully learning,” she said.

Fox News’ Chris Wallace pointed out that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not say schools had to close and released guidelines last month for how they could reopen safely.

DeVos acknowledged that exceptions could be made in areas that are seeing a spike in cases.

“Where there are hot spots in the future, in the fall, of course that has to be dealt with differently,” she said.

DeVos also doubled down on threats to withhold federal funding from schools that don’t reopen.

“American investment in education is a promise to students and their families,” she said. “If schools aren’t going to reopen and not fulfill that promise, they shouldn’t get the funds.”

But Wallace noted that she and President Trump don’t have that power and to cut funds, and that they’d have to work with Congress.

DeVos said the administration is “looking at all the options.”

“Because it’s a promise of the American people, to students and their families, and we want to make sure that promise is followed through on,” she said.

The US has reported more than 3 million coronavirus cases, and nearly 135,000 Americans have died of the disease.