1. United States
2. Ariz.
3. Letter

The United States Department of Education plays a critical role in developing our workforce. It is ignorant to believe otherwise. All Americans benefit from a strong public school system and from assistance for students to obtain post high school training and education. I understand that there are probably many governmental departments that have bloat and lack oversight, but the Department of Education suffers from being overly policed by bureaucracy and under funded. Any plan to restructure the department must include fully funded and robust public education. Arizona students already suffer due to underfunding and our state’s charter school scam. We are falling behind in education and, as the result, we are unable to attract and retain talent for our state. Companies choose NOT to bring jobs here because our school system is in such despair. It has not always been this way, but the systematic destruction of public schools has led to an unskilled labor force and a lack of job growth. Arizona voters expect each of you to push back on the Administration’s plans to dismantle the Department of Education and protect students.