The Philadelphia fourth grader who President Trump shouted out to in his State of the Union speech Tuesday to promote school choice reportedly already attends one of the city’s most desired charter schools.
According to a Philadelphia Inquirer report Friday, Janiyah Davis — who Trump said in his speech is one of thousands of students “trapped in failing government schools” as he announced that she will receive a scholarship to attend the school of her choice — has attended Math, Science and Technology Community Charter School III since September.
The Inquirer notes that the charter school is so in demand that it received 6,500 applications for 100 seats next year and that because charters are independently run but taxpayer-funded, this means Davis and the other 900 students at the school do not pay tuition.
Davis’ mother Stephanie expressed puzzlement when asked how she and her daughter landed in the audience for Trump’s State of the Union speech in an interview with the Inquirer.
“I was kind of hesitant to answer [when a call came from Washington]. I thought it was a scam,” Davis told the Inquirer.
Read the Philadelphia Inquirer’s report here.
