Editor's note: This is our first installment of a weekly review item that looks at national school choice developments: public, private, district, charter, virtual and home education. Please let us know if you find it helpful.
Private school choice finished strong in March, and is starting strong in April. Vouchers, tax credit scholarships and education savings accounts advanced in state legislatures across the country, and several new programs will likely become law.
Arkansas: Special needs vouchers now await the governor's signature.
Arizona: A bill headed to the governor would allow students on tribal reservations to participate in Empowerment Scholarship Accounts.
Florida: An expansion of Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts clears the Senate.
Montana: Tax credit scholarships narrowly pass the state Senate.
Nevada: Tax credit scholarship legislation advances.
Tennessee: A voucher bill "seems inevitable."
The Wall Street Journal noticed the trend. But here's the thing: These are mostly red or purple states. Those looking to break down the blue wall might have to wait until this summer. And Matthew Ladner puts things perspective. If we look at the scale of the American education system, these gains still look fairly incremental.
Quote of the week:
"To allow your competitor to be the arbiter whether you can move into the area is a scheme that went of business when the Soviet Union had their going-out-of-business sale. I don’t think it worked.” - Florida Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, a former school board member and superintendent, on the pitfalls of allowing districts to control the growth of charter schools.
Meanwhile, in Nebraska, Sen. Tyson Larson would like to provide some choice quotes on charter schools, even if his colleagues think he's out of order.
We, on the other hand, love to hear from school choice supporters. Send suggested links, tips, gripes and suggestions to [email protected]. Patrick Gibbons contributed to the compilation of this post, and would like to hear from you as well.
