Written by Don Byrd
A school voucher program (called “opportunity scholarships) in the District of Columbia is scheduled to expire later this year, and several lawmakers in Congress are determined to reauthorize its funding, despite concerns regarding the program’s effectiveness (pdf report) and the fact that is overwhelmingly funds religious and parochial education.
Roll Call reports on a hearing conducted yesterday by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
The program, first established in 2004, is a pet project for Speaker John A. Boehner, R-Ohio, and he and other Republicans say it improves education in the District by providing low-income families with scholarships to attend private schools. Democrats argue it is wiser and more consistent with D.C. home rule to spend the money on the public school and charter system in the District.
“If Congress sincerely wanted to help students in the District it would direct the voucher funds to D.C.’s robust, home rule, public school choice: our publicly accountable charter schools,” said Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C. Norton said she supported letting the program continue until the current participants graduate, but she does not support expanding the program to take in new students.
The Baptist Joint Committee has long opposed school vouchers in various forms because they send public/taxpayer money to fund religious education. Furthermore, as a 2013 letter to the U.S. Senate signed by the BJC and dozens of other advocates noted, “voucher programs have proven ineffective, lack accountability to taxpayers, and deprive students of rights provided to public school students.”
Congress should finally let this program expire and use taxpayer money to more robustly fund public education in the District.
