Democrats continue drive for School Choice

According to the Alliance for School Choice:

As was the case in 2006 and 2007, Democrats were instrumental in the majority of school choice legislative victories in 2008.

• In Florida, the $30 million expansion of the Corporate Tax Credit Scholarship program was supported by a majority of African-American legislators, all Hispanic legislators, and one-third of the entire Democratic caucus.

• In Louisiana, the New Orleans voucher program passed through the Democratic House and Senate; the bill’s authors in each house were Democrats, and 28 Democratic legislators voted for the bill.

• With the support of Washington, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and other prominent Democrats, continued funding of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program was approved by Congress.

Chronic illiteracy plagues SC Public Schools

Parents and community members throughout Charleston were shocked this week to learn that illiteracy and under-literacy run rampant in the Charleston County public school system.

From the P&C‘s recent article by Diette Courrégé:

“Test scores show 20 percent of rising 9th-graders read at or below 4th-grade level.”

Among the disturbing data points:

–More than 20 percent of the Charleston’s rising ninth-graders read on a fourth-grade level or worse.

–Nearly half of the incoming freshmen at North Charleston High School read at a fourth-grade level or worse.

–Eleven percent of the incoming freshmen at Wando High School read at a fourth-grade level or worse.

The reporter further notes that one-in-seven adults in Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties is functionally illiterate, defined as reading below an eighth-grade level. Up to 20,000 tri-county adults have less than a ninth-grade education, which is an alarming level, but makes sense in light of the South Carolina’s shoddy 55% on-time public high school graduation rate.

Functionally illiterate adults can’t understand a newspaper article, complete a job application, follow the directions on a prescription label or fill out a bank deposit slip.

Real school choice in S.C. is high priority

“Real school choice in S.C. is high priority,” an editorial published in the Times and Democrat (5/22).

In recent weeks some politicians and administrators who claim to speak for “public education” have made a frightening suggestion: They’ve argued that public debate over school choice should be entirely halted.

Dr. Paul Krohne, director of the S.C. Schools Boards Association and Dr. Jim Rex, state superintendent of schools, have called the discussion of educational choices “expensive,” “distracting” and even “dangerous.”

Their core premise is that one-size-fits-all government schools are a panacea for all that ails the children — and communities — of South Carolina. Rather than defend and explain this questionable position, they try to squelch public debate.

This tactic is absurd and alarmingly undemocratic. It indicates an esteem of the system over the individual students and families those schools were opened to serve.

More Black Lawmakers Supporting School Choice

According to this article in USA Today, school choice is a reform measure that more black lawmakers are willing to publicly support.

Despite heated opposition from unions and status quo politicians, these officials have been willing to do whatever it takes to help children in failing public schools have access to a quality education. Prominent examples of this very necessary leadership are Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, Newark Mayor Cory Booker and former Washington, D.C., mayor Anthony Williams.

Putting children first- in the face of political pressure- puts these leaders in stark contrast to President Obama, who presided over the demise of the school choice program in Washington, D.C. that allowed low-income students to escape public schools so bad that US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan referred to them as “a national disgrace.”

Here in South Carolina, State Senator Robert Ford has been a strident voice for school choice options. Despite personal attacks and dismissive treatment by establishment hangers-on, Ford has continued pointing out the hypocrisy of lawmakers refusing parents choice, and demanding that low-income students in South Carolina have the same opportunities as those available to the children of more influential citizens.

Good Mileage More Important to Congress than Children

Members of Congress ( 38% of which chose to send their own children to private school) sent a cutting message about governmental priorities to parents this week. Ignoring the large crowd of parents and children begging them to preserve the Washington, D.C. school choice program, politicians brushed them aside to do what they felt was best for their own political careers: say “how high?” when unions said “jump!”

Adding insult to a real injury for low-income families, the US Senate approved a “Cash for Clunkers” bill the same day that would hand out $4,500 vouchers to people who trade in their old cars for a newer, more fuel efficient machines.

The cruel irony of the Senate’s actions will not be lost on the families forced to send their children back to dangerous, failing public schools. Apparently, many of the same elected officials who believe financial incentives are evil and destructive when they are given to low-income students who need an education, are happy to pass out benefits to people who can afford to buy new vehicles.

Actions speak louder than the empty words uttered on the campaign trail, and the actions of U.S. Senators say that they think good mileage is more important than childrens’ education.

Parents are Talking, Are Lawmakers Listening? (VIDEO)

Dozens of parents have testified before state senators about the need families have for real school choice, and thousands more have visited the Statehouse over the last three years to plead with lawmakers for a fair chance at quality education.

Private school educators,  home school parents and public school parents have pointed out example after example of children with educational needs that local public schools are unable, or unwilling to meet.

Lawmakers, like State Senator Robert Ford, have pointed out the injustice of confining thousands of children to failing public schools, with no education, and no hope for anything better.

Even in front of the parents pleading with the state senate for help, education officials and establishment insiders stand up and try to divert lawmakers’ attention away from parents, and back to the wants of the establishment.

Lawmakers need to listen to the people in their districts who want real choices, and act accordingly.

Adam Schaeffer on School Choice

While embittered bureaucrats insist that giving parents real school choice is “experimental” and “dangerous,” other states are showing the tremendous benefits of school choice in improved academics, cost savings and increased equity in education.

Adam Schaeffer, of the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom, urged the SC Senate K-12 Education Subcommittee to look at the documented success of school choice in other states, and to adopt legislation that would help families in South Carolina.

More than anything, South Carolina lawmakers need to bear in mind that school choice is a reform measure that families in their districts want. Thousands of families have rallied at the state capitol in support of school choice on two occasions. Just last week hundreds more parents, students and educators came to make their need for choice known to state senators.

Lawmakers have no excuse to put off passing school choice in South Carolina. The data showing its benefits are clear, and more importantly, it is what many South Carolina families want.

Educators Plead With Senators to Help Children

“We’re losing our young men in this state. Some kids just need a different approach, a different environment to achieve.”- Col. Nathaniel Green, Eagle Military Academy

Eagle Military Academy is just one of the small, private schools around South Carolina serving low income students who could not make it in failing public schools. Last week’s Senate K-12 Education subcommittee meeting gave several representatives from these schools an opportunity to tell senators  how much their schools are doing to help children who would otherwise have no hope for an education and a future.

The overwhelming message of these schools:  “Give us the means to help more needy children.”

Senate Bill 520 provides an easy and accountable way for poor families to have access to private schools. Student Scholarship Organizations would receive contributions from individuals and corporations and disperse the money in the form of scholarships to families below 200% of the federal poverty level. For far less than the amount spent in public schools, privately donated scholarships can take a student out of a one-size-fits-all failing school, and into an environment truly geared toward helping them.

Senators have in their hands the opportunity to help schools like Eagle Military Academy continue to provide quality education and personal care for children who desperately need it. The other option is to ignore the pleas of desperate parents, children and educators, and take the easy route of caving in to education establishment bullying and fear mongering.

Parents Pack Senate Building to Demand “Students over System”

One of the two over-flow rooms packed with supporters of School Choice during the K-12 Education Subcommittee public hearing on S.520.

Today over 200 parents, educators, children and activists packed the halls of the state senate offices. Their mission was to urge state senators sitting on the K-12 Education Subcommittee to vote for real school choice options in South Carolina.

Despite the fact that halls in the Gressette Building are regularly crowded with paid lobbyists, security personnel refused to allow parents to stand in the hall outside where the hearing was taking place.  Even though many of these individuals had traveled long distances to be seen by their elected officials, scores of parents, children and educators were made to move to other empty hearing rooms, some of which were on a different floor from where the hearing was taking place.

Even these attempts to diminish the impact of the voters and taxpayers supporting school choice could not lessen the appeal of the parents’ testimonies.

38% of Congress Chose Private Schools

“My family has given up so much so that I could have the opportunity to serve; I didn’t want to try to save the country’s children and our educational system and jeopardize my own children’s education.” -Arne Duncan, US Secretary of Education on choosing which schools his children would attend

According to The Washington Post, 38 percent of the members of Congress sent their own children to private school, and 20 percent attended private school themselves.

This is nearly twice the percentage of the general public that has attended private institutions, and some members of Congress seem eager to keep the disparity high.

Despite test results showing participants in the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program reading half a grade above their peers in public school, many of the lawmakers whose children attended private schools are trying to kill the same options for the poorest families in D.C.