Much of the enthusiasm for Barack Obama back in 2008 came from wide-eyed idealist liberals who were convinced that many problems could be solved if only the federal government would commit money and attention to them. In few areas was this sentiment stronger than in public education, where liberals have long believed schools are simply underfunded and insufficiently supported. Turning on the spigot of dollars from Washington, they thought, would make all the difference if it could be combined with the steady hand of a real education pro who wanted to save and strengthen the schools, not attack them (like they think Betsy DeVos wants to do).
Obama's choice of Arne Duncan as Secretary of Education, along with the establishment of new reform programs and a fresh infusion of federal cash, was supposed to be just the thing that would inject new life in public education and turn around failing schools.
