Dear Mrs. Betsy DeVos,

Just a few days ago, I held my breath as I waited for your response to two very critical questions:

1) Whether you believe that guns have no place in and around schools.

2) Whether you commit to supporting the 2011 Title IX guidance regarding sexual assault on college campuses.

Your response to both of these questions left me devastated.

Even when setting aside the fact that you never really answered any of the questions addressed to you (including the two mentioned above) with a definitive answer (i.e. "Yes" or "No"), it is hard not to feel afraid after your hearing. As a student who has spent more than one class meeting discussing what I and my classmates should do if ever there is a threat of an active shooter on campus, I am terrified that you do not seem to realize that the last thing I want to worry about is being shot while trying to obtain an education. It is not normal for me, or any other student, to wonder whether I will make it home safe from school today.

You are supposed to advocate on my and my fellow students' behalf.

You are supposed to ensure that I am safe while I am at school.

You are the first line of defense, not a good guy with a gun. Yet, you are not able to promise me that you will look out for me. I am not sure if I should be more afraid of you than potential grizzly bears.

Furthermore, your refusal to promise that you will uphold the 2011 Title IX guidance regarding sexual assault on college campuses has left me feeling betrayed. According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, one in five women and one in sixteen men are sexually assaulted while in college. I cannot comprehend how these two statistics alone are not enough to make you see that it is not premature to commit to enforcing campus sexual assault protections. Once again, keeping students safe and maximizing their chances to learn would be part of your job as Secretary of Education.

Is that too much to ask?

As someone who works with victims of campus sexual assault on a daily basis, I think that the least you can do is leave the current protections in place and make sure that they are enforced. I am not even asking you to support the passage of additional protections, even though those of us who work in the field know that additional protections are oftentimes necessary.

All I am asking of you is simply not to destroy the protections that are already in place. Help me and my fellow students feel and remain safe: it is the least you can do.

Sincerely,

A Student