Imagine how different public education in America would be if parents had real control of the $500 billion (more than $10,000 per child) that is spent on their children’s behalf. With its new state-funded ESA program, Arizona is about to give us a window into that possible and exciting future.
Since 1955, Milton Friedman and his many disciples have been championing approaches that would give power to parents — through school-choice policies like vouchers, tax credits, and the establishment of charter schools. The result has been a proliferation of innovative programs that enable more parents to choose their children’s school, leading to increased parental satisfaction, higher test scores, rising graduation rates, and improved public-school performance.
To date, none of these valuable school-choice policies have provided parents with full control over their children’s share of school funding. But that will now change with the newest (and most aggressive) school-choice policy ever enacted.
Earlier this month, Arizona governor Jan Brewer approved SB 15523, legislation that authorizes “Arizona Empowerment Accounts” that will give the parents of eligible special-education students the opportunity to receive state-funded education savings accounts (ESAs) to be used to purchase an education for the child (with appropriate state oversight). Funds can be used for designated purposes including private-school tuition, tutoring, and online education. Any savings can be kept in the account and used in future years or, ultimately, on the child’s college education. The Goldwater Institute, which first proposed this idea in 2005, has the details.
The enactment of this program marks a dramatic shift in the school-choice and education-reform debate. Earlier this year, when Florida governor Rick Scott proposed a system of universal state-funded K-12 ESAs, Reihan Salam called the proposal among “the most significant, transformative ideas I’ve ever seen advanced by an actual elected official with any real power.”
This year is likely to be a landmark year for school choice and education reform, with Speaker Boehner’s successful reauthorization of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program and potential school-choice victories in Indiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. But no victory will be bigger than Arizona’s, especially if other states follow its lead and dramatically increase parents’ control of their children’s educational future by enacting state-funded education savings accounts.
— Carrie Lukas is the managing director of the Independent Women’s Forum (www.iwf.org).
Not many know that online courses follow the normal academic schedule for each term. They are not self–paced. For instance all registered students at the "High Speed University" proceed through the course as a group
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse> with appropriate state oversight
This is how Milton Friedman and the National Review will, in due course, deliver the private and parochial schools into the tender clutches of the National Education Association. If you take the state's money, you take the state's "oversight." When the teacher's unions stop complaining about so-called vouchers, you will know their takeover is complete.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseExcellent news. My first thought was "Why isn't this more widely known?" ... but then I realized that it's better this way. If the national media start paying attention to these good ideas at the state level, the Two Minutes Hate Machine will go into overdrive and the ideas will be ground to dust. It's better to keep their attention on trivia.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseFor those parents who are going to use the government school system no matter what, this is good news. For those of us who opt to educate our own children, it's chill-inducing.
Every year, some Republican tries to introduce a bill to give state tax credits to homeschoolers. It's wrong. It's an abuse of federal powers. And it could easily lead to this scenario:
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1.Congress adopts tax credits for homeschoolers.
2.Homeschoolers accept the tax credits.
3.Congress now has Constitutional authority over homeschooling.
4.The IRS Secretary adopts “regulations” to determine the definition of a “homeschool”, and to determine what courses, curricula, textbooks, timeframe, and method a parent can use in order to “qualify” for the tax credits.
5.The IRS audits your homeschool course, curricula, textbooks, timeframe, and method used.
6.The federal definition of the term “homeschool” conflicts with the State definition of “homeschool”. The Supremacy clause of the Constitution now applies, rendering the State definition of “homeschool” null and void. Parents must now comply with the federal definition of “homeschool”. The authority of state legislatures to regulate education within their state is usurped.
7.Parents who do not comply with the federal definition of “homeschool” may be in violation of the federal law.
8.Congress, the President, or the federal Education Department establish new laws or regulations dealing with violations of the federal “homeschool” law.
9.Parents are found to be neglectful of their children for violating the federal “homeschool” law.
10.Congress adopts new legislation establishing a federal Department of Child Protective Services.
11.The new federal Child Protective Services agency adopts new rules and regulations defining neglect and abuse, and hire new employees with investigative powers, and powers to remove the child from the home.
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