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Recently, the United States Supreme Court heard arguments
in the Cleveland school voucher case. While conservatives
like to euphemistically refer to this issue as one of
“school choice,” it is about much more than
simply choice. At its core is actually an attack on
the historical concepts of support for public education
and of the traditional separation between church and
state. As Ralph G. Neas noted in a recent USA TODAY
article, H.L Mencken had it right when he said that
for every problem there is a neat, simple solution;
and it is always wrong.”
In
the Cleveland case, the Ohio Legislature passed a law
granting Cleveland parents a $2,250.00 voucher, redeemable
at private, parochial or public schools. While the claim
was it provided “school choice,” the reality
is that 99% of the 3,800 students who received the vouchers
used them for religious schools, as suburban public
schools did not participate in the program and private
school tuition was too expensive. Most revealing is
the fact that the vouchers did not really help students
achieve school choice at all, as only 20% of the students
using vouchers actually transferred from public schools.
Instead, public funds went to support religious schools
where these students were already enrolled. In essence,
the program did little to meet its stated goal of helping
children from poor families escape failing public schools.
Worse,
the program is clearly unconstitutional as a violation
of the prohibition against government support of religion.
Thomas Jefferson and our founding fathers eloquently
stated their concern for the need for a wall of separation
between church and state. The Cleveland plan violates
the U.S. Constitution, as taxpayer money is used to
teach religion and religious practices, having the impermissible
effect of advancing religion. Remember, God favors no
group. Only religions do that. They should not do so
with your taxpayer money.
Even
if this voucher program were constitutional, it is a
reprehensible idea, as it drained financial resources
from public schools. Where vouchers have been introduced,
public schools have had their funds drastically cut.
Ohio transferred over $5 million from a public school
fund designed to help poverty area schools. Milwaukee
diverted $25 million. The result? Public schools were
left with less money for books, computers, security,
transportation and classroom supplies. When we consider
the relatively limited amounts of money that the public
is already willing to allocate to education, or that
some towns fail to pass school budgets or bond issues,
skimming off additional funds from public schools is
not an answer.
Voucher
programs do not enhance educational equality. They do
exactly the opposite. Private and parochial schools
may pick and choose which students to admit, siphoning
off the “desirable” ones and leaving behind
those with special needs, learning disabilities and
behavioral problems, for the public schools. A US Department
of Education report found that 68% of private schools
would not accept vouchers if they had to accept special-needs
students.
The
issue of accountability cannot be adequately addressed
in this column, but the evidence reveals that private
schools do not feel the sting of public accountability
for use of taxpayer funds. In Milwaukee, six voucher
schools have closed, and officials have been indicted
for criminal fraud. In Cleveland, the voucher program
was 41% over budget. Only 71% of private school teachers
are licensed, versus 97% of public school teachers.
The
utter failure of the voucher concept is that study after
study reveals that there is no major improvement in
student performance in private schools over their public
school counterparts. Studies in Cleveland and Milwaukee
concluded that there was no overall improvement in student
achievement. In Milwaukee, Professor Alex Molnar concluded
that public school students attending smaller sized
classes did better than the voucher students. The money
used in Milwaukee for private school vouchers would
have supported putting twice as many public school students
in smaller classes, with better academic results.
Americans
have made it clear that they prefer improving public
schools over paying for private and religious education
with taxpayer money. A Gallop Poll found the margin
in favor of public school improvement over voucher programs
was 70-28 percent. Over the last 30 years, the public
has rejected vouchers every time they have been proposed,
most recently in 2000, by 2-1 margins in California
and Michigan.
The
fact is, we like our public schools and many of us pick
our communities because of the school systems. “School
choice” programs divide communities, divert public
funds and weaken local public education, while providing
no measurable educational benefit.
True,
“bad” public schools exist, but there are
better ways to provide “school choice”, such
as charter schools and magnet schools, which accomplish
the same goal, without religious proselytizing. Coupled
with smaller class sizes, tougher standards and teacher
and student accountability, the goal of a quality education
can be available to everyone.
March
18, 2002
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