St. George Spectrum

Seriously Consider Vouchers

October 12, 2007

Leah Barker

http://www.thespectrum.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071012/OPINION/710120314

Utah faces some unique challenges in education. We have more students per capita than any other state. On Nov. 6 citizens will have the opportunity to vote for Referendum 1 - the voucher program.

Vouchers will improve education for every child in Utah by giving parents the ability to choose the school that best meets the needs of their child and by increasing funding and reducing class size in public schools.

Newspapers continually report the inequities in public schools:
Drop-out rates for Hispanic and other minority children are at 50 percent or higher.

Low income students score drastically below their counterparts from more affluent families.

Test scores in low income neighborhood schools are a fraction of the scores in more affluent schools.

A problem of this magnitude demands serious attention. We would be negligent if we did not explore all possible solutions. The voucher program will benefit thousands of Utah children who silently and anonymously slip through the cracks into the ranks of illiteracy and the undereducated.

Utah taxpayers will spend $4.1 billion on public education this year - $7,500 per student.

The $9 million allocated for the voucher bill out of the general fund represents less than 1¼2 of 1 percent of total public education spending. (We spend $22 million every day on public education).

Low income children will benefit the most by receiving a $3,000 voucher, scaling back to $500 based on family income.

When a student transfers with a voucher, the public school counts them as if enrolled and receives their funding for five years.

I run Children First Utah, a nonprofit organization offering private school scholarships to children from low income families. Private schools have a proven track record. I have seen firsthand the impact a quality education can have on children and their families. Parents in this program report these scholarships have given their children the opportunity to pull from underachievement to above average achievement.

Children who could not read or do math are now mastering these skills. Children who were discouraged are now enthusiastic about learning. These accomplishments have given families hope that one day their children can graduate from high school and attend college.

Utah families who support school choice are driven by their understanding of the value of quality education for all children. We would prefer a thriving public school system but can no longer afford to wait for the ever promised and long delayed improvements. The time to offer all children a quality education is today.

A vote against Referendum 1 tells families who are desperate for an alternative that they don't count. It confirms their feelings of anonymity. They are mostly poor and minority families who feel forgotten. I hope Utah residents will take the time to understand the real issues behind Referendum 1 and realize that it is about children and their ability to succeed in education and in life. We must begin to put children before systems.

Leah Barker is the executive director of Children First Utah, a nonprofit organization offering children from low income families tuition assistance to private schools.