| Welcome to Livonianeighbors.com. We hope you enjoy your visit. You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. To ensure your privacy, never use personal information in your screen name or email address ("janedoe@hotmail.com" or "Billysmom" for example). Join our community! If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features: |
| Utah school voucher program; Can this work in Michigan? | |
|---|---|
| Tweet Topic Started: Nov 1 2007, 02:37 PM (232 Views) | |
| LPS Reformer | Nov 1 2007, 02:37 PM Post #1 |
|
The schools exist to educate, not employ.
|
Link A Quick Note From Susan Morris... The passage of the Parent Choice in Education Act, is the most promising news in education in our lifetime. Here's what the new law means: Your Money (tax dollars) Your Children Your Choice - Private or Public School Isn't that simple? And doesn't it make sense? It just makes sense that, as parents, we should be able to choose the very best option for our children's education. Because what we're really choosing is their future. The type of education we provide them today, will help define who they are tomorrow. This new law, simply gives us, the parents, back the power to make those choices using our tax dollars. Your money, your children, your choice - it's really just that simple. |
|
“Child Abuse” means different things to different people.... ----Randy Liepa 8/9/12 | |
![]() |
|
| LPS Reformer | Nov 1 2007, 02:38 PM Post #2 |
|
The schools exist to educate, not employ.
|
What is the voucher program? A voucher is simply a scholarship that helps pay for tuition at K-12 private schools. To determine if you qualify, click here. How much money can I get? The amount ranges from $500 to $3,000, depending on your household size and income. Click here for details. Does my my family qualify? All families qualify if they had children enrolled in Utah public schools on January 1, 2007, or if they have a child eligible to enter public kindergarten for 2007-08. The maximum scholarship of $3,000, however, is for "low-income" families (those who are eligible for reduced prices under the federal school lunch program). Click here to see complete income/scholarship tables. What schools are participating? Private schools with at least 40 students that are willing to meet certain testing, disclosure, health, safety and financial requirements are eligible if they choose. How do I apply? When is the application deadline? The Utah State Board of Education is required to have applications available by May 15. You may go to www.SchoolChoiceUtah.org to sign up to receive an e-mail notice as soon as applications are available. The application deadline is July 15, 2007. Do vouchers hurt public schools? No, they help! First, voucher money comes from the state General Fund, not the Uniform School Fund (for public schools). Second, the maximum voucher is $3,000. The remaining $3,309 OR MORE that the state normally spends per student would stay in the student's school district for five years. (The actuall amount remaining will be determined by the average scholarship amount.) This means that the school districts will have more money per pupil than before the voucher passed. And teachers will have smaller class sizes. As the money cushion is phased out after five years, natural population growth will have provided new funding in its place. What is the private school difference? A charter school is a public school, fully funded by the state. Therefore, the state controls requirements for teachers and curriculum. As long as a charter school meets those requirements, its independent school board can select teachers and curriculum materials. A private school, on the other hand, is accountable to parents--not state bureaucrats--for teacher credentials, curriculum content and student performance. What about home schoolers? Currently, only home schoolers who also meet federal low-income guidelines qualify for a voucher. The exception would be if they have an eligible kindergartner for 2007-08. They would then qualify for that child, whatever their income. What about children already enrolled in private schools? The same stipulations apply as for home schoolers. What if we're new Utah residents? Any family residing in Utah after January 1, 2007 and before the application deadline is eligible for a voucher. What is the actual cost of the vouchers to taxpayers? The legislature appropriated $9.2 million for the voucher program. They also appropriated $3.5 BILLION for public education. So less than 1/2 of 1 percent of the total expenditure for education goes for vouchers. Or to put it a differently, Utah public education spends more than TWICE THE ENTIRE ANNUAL AMOUNT allocated for vouchers EVERY SCHOOL DAY. Furthermore, vouchers allow the state to educate a child for 1/3 the cost of public education, with an estimated savings of over $1 BILLION in 13 years. Not only that, but the state's cost of every child in private school is supplemented by money paid by their parents, since the voucher normally does not cover the entire cost of tuition. So vouchers increase the amount of PRIVATE money flowing into the education system as well. It's a win-win situation for both the private and public system. But should public money benefit private businesses? It does every day in every branch of government. People on public assistance spend food stamps at private grocery stores. The elderly on Medicare visit private doctors and hospitals. And public schools hire private contractors to build school buildings, buy textbooks from private publishers and so on. In education, yes, private businesses receive a secondary benefit, but the PRIMARY benefit goes to the children. What about the separation of church and state when it comes to religious private schools? The Supreme Court has upheld voucher programs in other states attacked on this very issue. The reason, again, is that it is lawful for parents to have the right to direct their children's education, and the children's benefit is the primary concern. Both secular and religious private schools have an equal opportunity for a secondary benefit, according to parents' choice. |
|
“Child Abuse” means different things to different people.... ----Randy Liepa 8/9/12 | |
![]() |
|
| « Previous Topic · Livonia Neighbors Forum · Next Topic » |





