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NC voucher fallout: We’re all paying for pricey private schools. It’ll get worse

NC voucher fallout: We’re all paying for pricey private schools. It’ll get worse

Charlotte Christian School states on its website that all families applying for financial assistance for the 2024-25 school year must also apply to North Carolina’s Opportunity Scholarship program. The same is true of Trinity Academy in Raleigh, North Raleigh Christian Academy and many other schools in the state that accept voucher payments.

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Deal to expand private school vouchers falls apart as NC lawmakers wind down session
Draining Funds From Public Education Emily Walkenhorst Draining Funds From Public Education Emily Walkenhorst

Deal to expand private school vouchers falls apart as NC lawmakers wind down session

An effort to expand a North Carolina program that uses taxpayer dollars to send students to private school collapsed in the statehouse as lawmakers drew the short legislative session to a close on Thursday.

Republican leaders of the state House and Senate had hoped to expand the Opportunity Scholarships program and had earmarked more than $460 million for the program in separate budget proposals. But negotiations fell apart between the chambers as they tried to figure out how to spend a $1 billion surplus.

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Secret recording shows pressure on Republican lawmakers to vote for school vouchers
Personal Narratives Blogs Webinars Phil Williams Personal Narratives Blogs Webinars Phil Williams

Secret recording shows pressure on Republican lawmakers to vote for school vouchers

Another secret recording obtained by NewsChannel 5 Investigates reveals how Tennessee lawmakers are facing pressure to send your tax dollars to the state's private schools.

In the recording, the lead lobbyist for a well-financed group lobbying for school vouchers warns a reluctant lawmaker that his job could be at stake if he doesn't vote the way she wants him to vote.

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As a Tennessee rural educator, I fear that school voucher expansion will hurt our children

As a Tennessee rural educator, I fear that school voucher expansion will hurt our children

The National Rural Education Association (NREA) advocates for equitable educational opportunities for the nearly 9 million students attending rural public schools across America. Tennessee has over 600,000 students in rural districts that are the backbone of our communities. But now our rural schools face an existential threat from school vouchers.

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School choice seems like a quick fix, but does more harm than good for families in the U.S.
Personal Narratives Blogs Webinars Cyrus Driver and Mary Gonzalez Personal Narratives Blogs Webinars Cyrus Driver and Mary Gonzalez

School choice seems like a quick fix, but does more harm than good for families in the U.S.

Right now, a lot of people claim to have the answer to solving the problem of equity in our education system. It seems that equity in education is a value many of us share, regardless of political leaning. There are a number of roads that people think will take us there, but not all roads are clear on the reality that education is a public good and a key ingredient in a healthy democracy.

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Florida school vouchers can pay for TVs, kayaks and theme parks. Is that OK?
Accountability Damaris Allen Accountability Damaris Allen

Florida school vouchers can pay for TVs, kayaks and theme parks. Is that OK?

As Florida lawmakers expanded eligibility for school vouchers this year, they also gave parents more ways to spend the money.

Theme park passes, 55-inch TVs, and stand-up paddleboards are among the approved items that recipients can buy to use at home. The purchases can be made by parents who home-school their children or send them to private schools, if any voucher money remains after paying tuition and fees.

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Republicans Poised to Further Undermine North Carolina Public Schools in Upcoming Votes
Undermining Public Education CREED and HEAL NC Undermining Public Education CREED and HEAL NC

Republicans Poised to Further Undermine North Carolina Public Schools in Upcoming Votes

Proposed private school voucher expansions divert even more money from an already underfunded public school system, and fail to address severe teacher shortages.

North Carolina public schools face severe teacher and staff shortages, especially in rural areas, and the state ranks dead last or near last in several national categories charting public education spending. 

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The Privatization of Everything

The Privatization of Everything

As people reach for social justice and better lives, they create public goods--free education, public health, open parks, clean water, and many others--that must be kept out of the market. When private interests take over, they strip public goods of their power to lift people up, creating instead a tool to diminish democracy, further inequality, and separate us from each other. 

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Let’s listen to what parents, not politicians, really want from their public schools

Let’s listen to what parents, not politicians, really want from their public schools

As a school board member in Arizona, I hear the concerns, hopes and frustrations that parents and citizens have about our public schools. The things that families worry about? School safety, shrinking budgets, student achievement and the accessibility of programs.

These are the issues that unite our students and families in our public schools and the kinds of problems that they want addressed. And these are the issues that I really want to work on with other policymakers who, regardless of political affiliation, care about similar things.

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School Funding: A New Lawsuit and COVID-19

School Funding: A New Lawsuit and COVID-19

Though it has been the subject of debate for decades, school funding is back in the limelight in New Hampshire. The state Supreme Court heard oral arguments last week after four districts sued the state for not funding an adequate education for students. We examine the history and nuances of this discussion and explore how the issue is complicated by COVID-19.

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‘Government Schools’ or Public Schools? Trump, DeVos, and the Language of School Choice

‘Government Schools’ or Public Schools? Trump, DeVos, and the Language of School Choice

President Donald Trump didn’t coin the phrase “government schools.” But he gave it a big stage and a broader public audience during Tuesday’s State of the Union address, when he used it to urge Congress to back a bill that would provide $5 billion in tax credits to support scholarships for private school admission, tutoring, and other educational services.

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