US Education Secretary DeVos applauds SC school improvement – Fox News

FILE – In this Sept. 17, 2018 file photo, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos speaks during a student town hall at National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Democrats in Congress are accusing the Education Department of interfering with an investigation by the agency’s independent watchdog. Five lawmakers sent a letter to DeVos on Feb. 19, 2019, staying her deputy pressured the department’s inspector general on Jan. 3 to drop an internal investigation. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The nation’s top education official says she’s impressed with developments in what was once one of South Carolina’s most underperforming school districts.

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos spoke Thursday after touring schools in a district that’s one of several dozen along Interstate 95 bestowed the nickname “Corridor of Shame” because of their substandard schools.

DeVos said she was encouraged to see improvements like a more diverse curriculum that have come since last year, when state Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman declared a state of emergency in Florence School District Four and took over its management. By sharing some services with neighboring districts, state officials say they’ve saved over $600,000 in the struggling district’s budget.

The visit comes amid ongoing debate on how to improve South Carolina’s education system.