A Senate Committee is holding a hearing today on the future of school vouchers in the District of Columbia. Long-time voucher proponent Senator Lieberman's appears to have a sympathetic panel lined up to argue for the continuation of the program in front of the Governmental Affairs Committee.
Meanwhile, a group of education and religious liberty advocates, including the Baptist Joint Committee, have signed a letter from the National Coalition for Public Education to Lieberman's committee urging the end of the voucher system, arguing that vouchers do not improve education, and adding this:
NCPE believes that instead of sending federal money to private schools, money should instead be invested in the public schools. We also note that despite receiving public money, the participating private schools are not subject to all federal civil rights laws, and do not face the same public accountability standards, including those in the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, that all public schools face. We also believe this program continues to raise problems under the First Amendment of the Constitution.
The White House's budget proposal included a compromise that would continue federal voucher funding only for those students currently in the program.
