Ogden Standard-Examiner

Voucher issue splits minorities

October 28, 2007

BY JESUS LOPEZ JR.

Although there are numerous minority students enrolled in Utah’s private schools, many find themselves in disagreement on the school-voucher issue.
Sending her kids to private school has always been a dream for Miriam Hernandez, an immigrant from El Salvador who lives in Ogden with her husband and their two children.
“I think for a parent or at least for me, that it would be great if my children went to a private school,” Hernandez said. “I have always wanted to put my children in a private school, but it cost too much money.”
Even though a voucher would not cover the total tuition, Hernandez said any little bit would help.
Archie Archuleta, president of the Latino community organization Utah Council of La Raza, spent his professional life as an educator.  [full disclosure:  La Raza has been given money by the anti-voucher union:  NEA]
He said he is not wild about the idea of taxpayer money going to pay for someone else’s child to attend private school.
“If they want it, they deserve it,” Archuleta said, “but they should pay for it.”
Instead of giving taxpayer money to private schools, Archuleta said, we need to do more for our public schools. Vouchers will only further the disparity between rich schools and poorer schools, many of which are in areas that serve minorities.
“I thought we were all on the same page opposed to vouchers, but I’m finding that some Latinos are getting mad at the anti-voucher people because they think they are against the Catholic schools,” Archuleta said. “This is one of the lies that are being spread.” For many Latinos, Roman Catholic schools are a common option because many are members of that faith. Diana Hanebrink, advancement di- rector of St. Joseph Schools, said some parents have already expressed interest if the voucher referendum passes.
“In the spring, when we thought the funding would come through,” Hanebrink said, “we had a huge number of minorities, as well as nonminorities, applying because of the vouchers.”
Currently, St. Joseph has a minority student population of about 31 percent. Other Catholic schools serve minorities as well.
“We already have a large minority enrollment and we hope to increase diversity in our schools,” said Sister Genevra Rolf, associate superintendent of schools for the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City.
If Referendum No. 1 is approved, Rolf said, the Catholic schools should have sufficient room to accommodate an increase in students.
“We don’t expect a huge transfer of students,” Rolf said.
Rolf said that the diocese does not have any plans to build any more schools at this time, other than a new school being built in Riverdale and the expansion of a school in Tooele that has been in the works since before Gov. Jon Huntsman approved the voucher referendum.
Enrollment is based on a first-come, first-served basis.
Preference is given to students from the school’s own parish, as well as students who have brothers and sisters already attending the school.
Catholic schools are not the only option for Utah minorities.
Adinia Chavez, a Spanish teacher from Layton Christian Academy, said the school is one of the most diverse private schools in the state, including black and Latino students.
Layton Christian has a minority population of about 30 percent in the high school. The number does not include foreign exchange students from non-European countries.
Chavez has also seen families that hope the voucher referendum is approved.
“There was a family at the back-to-school night that they were praying that the vouchers would go through so they could send their kids here,” she said.
With the rest of the country watching for the results of the Nov. 6 referendum, national groups have come to Utah to talk to residents about the subject.
Hispanic Council for Reform in Educational Opportunities sent Isabel Santa from Washington, D.C., to talk to a variety of community groups in support of the vouchers. Hispanic CREO (Spanish for “I believe”) has bought ads in the Spanishlanguage media.
Utah is special in that it has put it up to the people to decide, Santa said.
“It is their money. It is their children. It is their decision,” Santa said.
“A Latino parent that works day and night to send their kids to a private school would be helped a lot by this.”
Former NAACP Ogden branch president H.C. Massey said that for some minorities, giving money to private schools is a reminder of efforts to keep segregation alive.
After the desegregation efforts of the 1960s, many private schools opened to remove white children from newly integrated schools.
If the voucher program is approved, Massey said, it should be subject to public oversight to ensure that there are places for minorities as well.
“Nobody gets public money without oversight,” Massey said. “They should let them know that they need to be well integrated. … They need to be American schools and look like America.”