Do private school choice programs serve a broader public good?
Opponents of a North Carolina school voucher program argued they do not - at least not as required by the state constitution.
But that was one of five constitutional claims rejected by the North Carolina Supreme Court this week, as justices voted 4-3 to uphold the program. In a key passage from the ruling, the majority outlined how private schools help serve a "public purpose."
The promotion of education generally, and educational opportunity in particular, is of paramount public importance to our state. Indeed, borrowing language from the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, our constitution preserves the ethic of educational opportunity, declaring that “[r]eligion, morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools, libraries, and the means of education shall forever be encouraged.” ... Although the scholarships at issue here are available only to families of modest means, and therefore inure to the benefit of the eligible students in the first instance, and to the designated nonpublic schools in the second, the ultimate beneficiary of providing these children additional educational opportunities is our collective citizenry... Accordingly, the appropriations made by the General Assembly for the Opportunity Scholarship Program were for a public purpose ...
In other words, while private school choice programs might help individual students attend non-public schools, they also serve the societal goal of helping to educate the public. This is an idea at the center of the new definition of public education.
Meanwhile ...
Vox critiques geographic school assignment. Wonks object to its definition of a "good" school. The Grade says they're misguided.
When charter school facilities funding goes horribly wrong.
The debate continues about whether, and how, universal ESAs can benefit the poor.
Home education policies vary significantly by state.
Arizona debates the purpose and impact of its tax credit scholarship program.
Some well-regarded charters target disadvantaged students, while others do not.
Quote of the Week
I believe that parents are a child's first teacher. That you cannot take away.
- Alachua County Public Schools Superintendent Owen Roberts, during a debate about home education regulations.
Send us your tips, feedback, criticism and suggestions for creating an education system that respects parents' role as children's first teachers to tpillow[at]sufs[dot]org.
