Salt Lake Tribune

Voucher laws mean more money and fewer students for public schools:  Supporting vouchers does not compromise one's support of public schools

October 21, 2007

By Galey Colosimo

http://www.sltrib.com/opinion/ci_7235607

Referendum 1, known as the voucher law, asks us to vote for or against a law that gives families, particularly poor families, the right to use a government voucher to help them afford a private school for their children.
The Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City supports increased funding for public schools and the voucher law and encourages voters to agree that this position will be a victory for all families.
Voucher opponents argue that the new law is too expensive and will leave little money for public schools to educate the anticipated swell of new students. National research on established choice programs has shown all of them to be at least fiscally neutral and the vast majority (10 of 12 studied) to be a cost savings.
These choice programs relieve public schools of the obligation to educate a student while at the same time keeping the majority of the money for that student in the public school. Where choice programs have been implemented there has been no tendency to slow the growth of funds to public schools. Utah's carefully crafted voucher law means more money and fewer students for public schools while providing more families the chance at a private education.
Other opponents say the law will increase segregation in our schools. A number of studies comparing segregation in public and private schools, in the context of choice programs, found that private schools in general and especially those participating in voucher programs are much less segregated than public schools. This makes sense because public school demographics are based on where students of a similar group live.
Many claim that the new law lacks accountability for private schools but again the national research provides a calming counterweight. A meta-analysis that reviewed the major research conducted on the existing choice programs revealed that these programs lead to improved academic achievement, especially among African American students; promote positive results for the public schools affected by the voucher; and lead to higher levels of both parent and student satisfaction.
Utah's voucher law requires accountability but in addition, parents who choose a school, will demand accountability from the school to offer a program that meets their needs. Otherwise, parents will remove their children from the school.
Those who oppose the new law discount the importance of "choice" as a motivating factor in school improvement. In a study of public charter schools, these teachers reported an 82 percent rate of overall job satisfaction, which is twice as high as teachers in private schools and more than three times as high as public schools.
These results suggest that teachers' ability to choose their schools positively affects their experience at school. The same can be said of families who choose their schools. The empirical evidence supports what we all know to be true - people want the freedom to choose their destiny and this law would encourage this fundamental human aspiration.
In Utah, our citizens should salute our public schools. They achieve results beyond their funding. But a reading of the research shows that supporting vouchers does not compromise one's support of public schools. We encourage all citizens to support public education and vote for Referendum 1 as the best way to support Utah's schoolchildren.
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* GALEY COLOSIMO is the principal of Juan Diego Catholic High School in Draper.