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Deborah Simmons

Deborah Simmons

Award-winning opinion writer Deborah Simmons is a senior correspondent who reports on City Hall and writes about education, culture, sports and family-related topics. Mrs. Simmons has worked at several newspapers, and since joining The Washington Times in 1985, has served as editorial-page editor and features editor and on the metro desk. She has taught copy editing at the University of Maryland at College Park.

An occasional panelist on Roland Martin's “Washington Watch” and Denise Rolark Barnes' “Let's Talk” weekly news analysis cable-TV programs, Mrs. Simmons has also appeared on BET's “Lead Story,” “Real Time with Bill Maher” and Mr. Maher's “Politically Incorrect,” “America's Black Forum,” Fox News' “The O'Reilly Factor,” “The Right Side with Armstrong Williams,” C-SPAN's “Washington Journal,” and “This is America with Dennis Wholey.” She also has been a guest radio commentator on NPR, WAMU, WMAL and WOL.

Mrs. Simmons attended the University of the District of Columbia and Trinity College. She and her husband, who live in Washington, have four children and two grandchildren. Contact Mrs. Simmons at [email protected].

 

Articles by Deborah Simmons

FILE - In this July 13, 2015 file photo, visitors wearing safety vests and hardhats begin a tour of the Destiny Charter Middle School in Tacoma, Wash. The school opened later in 2015. All told, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has given about $25 million to the Washington State Charter Schools Association, and since 2006, philanthropists and their private foundations and charities have given almost half a billion dollars to similar groups, according to an Associated Press analysis of tax filings and Foundation Center data.(AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, file)

Public school conundrum

Overseers of public charters tighten the screws on accountability. Are overseers of traditional public schools doing the same? Published December 13, 2018

Daniel Snyder, majority owner of the Washington Redskins

Let's go Dan Snyder, let's go!

The key to any new stadium, as you know, is the owner, and in the case of the Washington Redskins that owner is Dan Snyder, who was reared as a Redskins fan. So, with the 'Skins making so many blunders on and off the field, it's time to wonder: Does Mr. Snyder dream the big dream? Published December 10, 2018

Deborah Simmons

After the blue wave, a new push against school choice

Chris Van Hollen, the junior senator from Maryland, appears to have volunteered himself as the water bearer for education reform. The Democrat already has synchronized strategy with the teachers' unions and other progressive groups that want to rewrite the narrative on school choice. Published December 6, 2018

Deborah Simmons

What's going on at D.C. Fire and EMS?

Now, I don't know about you, but it struck me as odd that one of the first things out of the mouths of the media and fire officials was that Miss Annie' home did not have working smoke detectors. Published December 5, 2018

Deborah Simmons

D.C. hires school scandal fixers

Well, unless you were a D.C. parent or a D.C. leader privileged enough to have had a sitdown with either of these gentlemen, you haven't a clue as to who they are and what their agendas are. Published December 3, 2018

San Francisco 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster, right, leaves the Santa Clara County Superior Court, with his attorney Joshua Bentley after a preliminary hearing stemming from domestic violence accusations against Foster Thursday, May 17, 2018, in San Jose, Calif. Foster's ex-girlfriend, Elissa Ennis, recanted allegations Thursday that Foster physically assaulted her. She testified that she lied to authorities about the domestic assault to get back at Foster for breaking up with her. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) **FILE**

Redskins and the Reuben Foster roller coaster

It falls to Foster and his true family and friends to ensure he walks the straight and narrow. Such character reform doesn't fall into the hands of a jail, prison or correctional institution. Critics of the Redskins-Foster deal miss the point when they focus on the domestic abuse aspect. Published November 29, 2018

In this photo taken in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018, Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., smiles as as new members of the House and veteran representatives gather behind closed doors to discuss their agenda when they become the majority in the 116th Congress. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) ** FILE **

Thank Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for a valuable lesson

Most Americans expect public schools to teach children the basics of the United States of America, and a great place to start those lessons is the U.S. Constitution -- the rock-solid foundation under which it still stands. Published November 26, 2018

Deborah Simmons

California wildfires strike Jacob

The face of Jacob Saylors is an eye opener, a teary eye opener for the devastation that fires can cause. Jacob lost his home in a huge blaze that happened a decade ago when it swept through Paradise, California. His family lost their home that year, 2008. Then, like a cruel, cruel joke in a place called Paradise, Jacob lost his home again this month, when wildfires swept through Paradise. Published November 19, 2018

FILE - This Sept. 6, 2012, file photo, shows the Amazon logo in Santa Monica, Calif. Amazon Inc. is in "advanced talks" to open its second headquarters in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, The Washington Post reported Saturday, Nov. 3, 2018. Amazon, based in Seattle, is apparently seriously considering an area known as Crystal City. It's a large residential and office complex in Arlington, Virginia, just south of Washington, the Post said, citing unidentified sources. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)

Driving a hard bargain for Amazon

It's unbelievable, but consider this premise: The commonwealth of Virginia, Arlington County and Jeff Bezos should ban motor vehicles from Amazon's future National Landing site and surrounding commercial neighbors. Published November 15, 2018

Broward Supervisor of Elections Joe D'Alesandro, right, shows voting materials to campaign representatives, Sunday, Nov. 11, 2018, at the Broward Supervisor of Elections office in Lauderhill, Fla. (Joe Cavaretta /South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP) **FILE**

Recount the voters and recount the ballots

You would think fair and free elections would be one of America's most treasured treasures, considering it's a hallmark of our democracy and we like to spread facsimiles of our democracy around the globe. Well, think again. Published November 12, 2018

The Peace Cross is a memorial in Bladensburg, Maryland, which lost scores of residents in World War I. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Peace Cross is Veterans Day, World War I reminder

2019 will mark the 100th anniversary of the convening of the Paris Peace Conference, which formally ended World War I. And the Peace Cross is a memorial that today stands at a crossroads in Bladensburg, which lost scores of residents during the "war to end all wars." Published November 8, 2018

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is also confident that Democrats will prevail in the midterm elections. "If the election were held today, the Democrats would handily win the House," she said. (Associated Press/File)

Election results: What's topical, urgent and necessary

Americans' midterm voting opportunities, now passe, still left some issues unattended. The least of which is whether the Fat Lady, like Tuesday's voters, is looking ahead to 2020, and the not-so-teensie cost to hire three designers — one for a scarlet affair, another for a blue-tinted outfit and a third for a violet gown that reflects inclusiveness with nary a shade of black, white or brown. Published November 5, 2018

Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser speaks at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Audi Field, the new stadium in Washington for Major League Soccer club D.C. United, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Adam Zielonka / The Washington Times) ** FILE **

Vote. Whatever you do, please just vote

"We did it," D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, a liberal Democrat, proclaimed on Wednesday. "This week, we closed D.C. General once and for all." Published November 1, 2018

Deborah Simmons

Americans have their own problems and burdens

Indeed, Americans understand why you want to come. You say you want a better life for yourself and your family. You say you want to escape the drugs, violence, sex trafficking and lack of economic opportunities. Well, here's an insider's tip. Americans face the same problems. Published October 29, 2018

Deborah Simmons

Ben jealous of Larry Hogan's politics

The Democrats think they are going to reclaim the governorship of Maryland. However, at this juncture they need more than Ben Jealous. Published October 18, 2018

FILE - In this April 29, 2017, file photo, demonstrators sit on the ground along Pennsylvania Ave. in front of the White House in Washington. The National Park Service is exploring the question of whether it should recoup from protest organizers the cost of providing law enforcement and other support services for demonstrations held in the nation's capital. The proposed rule also could place new limits on spontaneous demonstrations and shrink a significant portion of the White House sidewalk accessible to the public. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

Shame on ACLU's Arthur Spitzer

The National Park Service (NPS) is considering changing how it processes applications for marches in Washington. Published October 15, 2018

Deborah Simmons

Metro's bagel and lox, black coffee

Metro authorities are considering allowing vendors to sell food and beverages at stations is a bit concerning. Moreover, as a frequent rider pointed out Thursday, nowhere in Metro's proposal does it say that passengers will be allowed to "consume" food or beverages in the stations or on trains. Published October 11, 2018