In last November’s election, Kentuckians like me voted overwhelmingly to reject an amendment that would have allowed hard-earned taxpayer dollars to be used for the funding of private school tuition. In every country in our state, this measure was rejected, and a similar trend occurred nationwide. Now, the U.S. Congress wants to force this program on every state in the nation, with absolutely no regard for public opinion.
The voucher bill that Congress has tucked into the Reconciliation Package, the Educational Choice for Children Act, is camouflaged as a tax measure but is poised to drain critical federal investments from our public school classrooms and school buildings. In addition to siphoning off critically needed dollars from our public schools, if passed, the measure has very few parameters for family qualification, and it completely fails to address the inequitable lack of regulation for private school curricula and learning outcomes.
In a nation that purports to be the “land of opportunity,” our government is allowing that opportunity to disintegrate before the very eyes of 90% of our nation’s children who attend public schools.
If passed, this voucher program will move public tax dollars out of public schools anytime a child chooses to attend a private school. The loss of funding will have a ripple effect on our neighborhood public schools, including the layoff of public school educators, the elimination of desperately needed resources, and the end of many enrichment programs that have helped our most vulnerable students thrive and grow. This will balloon class sizes and leave our neighborhood public schools unequipped to serve students with different needs, learning styles, and Individualized Education Programs — students whom many private schools do not accept.
This is about more than just our current schoolchildren. This is about generations to come and the entire future of our country. We, as a collective nation, cannot and will not survive if our government abandons public education. I urge all my fellow concerned Kentuckians to call your Senators and Representatives today and tell them to VOTE NO on the reconciliation package!
Written by
Maria Clark, mom of DCPS kids
