Betsy DeVos, picked by US President-elect Donald Trump for education secretary, speaks during the USA Thank You Tour December 9, 2016 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. / AFP / DON EMMERT (Photo credit should read DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Betsy DeVos is widely expected to push for expanding school choice programs if confirmed as education secretary.
Such a move is certain to bring pushback from teachers unions.
Democrats and civil rights activists also are raising concerns about how her conservative Christian beliefs might impact minority and LGBT students.
A Senate committee begins considering her nomination Tuesday. Her financial questionnaire shows DeVos has donated to the political campaigns of at least four committee members.
The committee chairman, Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, says DeVos will work to ensure equal access to a high quality education.
DeVos spent the past two decades advancing charter schools. She also has pushed for vouchers, which use public money to help low-income families send their kids to private and religious schools of their choice.
