I am going to assume that most of you do not remember Betsy DeVos. To refresh your memory, she was the education secretary in the last administration. Assuredly those of you who lean to the left have probably ignored just about anything that she said in the past, because of who appointed her to be education secretary. That’s politics and I get it.
(I am trying my best to make this essay totally non-political, because this subject should be totally non-political.)
Actually I do not recall much about Betsy DeVos, but I just came across something that she had said. Something she felt strongly about … namely that parents — not politicians or government bureaucrats — know what their children need to succeed academically.
Now I ask you to attempt to blind yourself politically. Can anybody disagree with that? Is there anybody reading this that thinks otherwise?
President Obama, whose own daughters attended Sidwell Friends for $40,000 per year, was able to choose the school which he felt was best for his children. Now, not everyone has forty grand a year to spend on el-hi school, but he was the President and could afford it. Moreover, as a parent, he knew what his children needed to succeed academically.
With this background, let me introduce the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP), which was created by Congress in 2004 after local parents organized an effort to provide education options for low-income parents.
Now the Biden administration plans to phase the program out in 2023. That would allow current students to finish at their current schools and prevent new students from enrolling in the voucher program.
This decision would prevent some parents’ younger children from participating in the same program that rescued their older children from failing schools. Those choices matter in a city where less than 30% of black students are reading and doing math at grade level. … Let that sink in -<30%!
OMG! Help me understand how this makes any sense. OSP does not need to have an infrastructure set up … it has already been functioning for almost twenty years. It has been hugely successful. So why phase out this program?
Does Biden’s decision have anything to do with the teacher’s unions. Duh!!
The National Education Association, the nation’s largest teachers’ union, signaled what it wanted the president to do about school choice prior to last year’s election. It recommended opposing the expansion of charter schools and eliminating D.C.’s voucher program in its policy playbook for the incoming Biden-Harris administration.
The irony is that nationally, public schoolteachers send their own children to private schools at a rate twice as high as the national average.
What does the public think when it comes to school choice?
A RealClear Opinion Research poll found majorities of both Republican and Democrat voters support school choice.
74% of voters support school choice, including 83% of Republicans, 70% of Democrats, and 69% of independents, according to the poll, which was conducted in June.
A majority (66%) of both Republican and Democrat poll respondents also supported giving public education funding directly to parents, rather than the education system, “to use for home, virtual, or private education expenses.”
“These results represent a marked increase in support for school choice since similar polling was conducted in April 2020,” a statement from the American Federation for Children (AFC) pointed out. “Overall support has increased from 64% to 74%; public school parent support has increased from 68% to 80%; Democrat support has increased from 59% to 70%.”
“Public support for school choice is at an all-time high. And, as the nation recovers from unprecedented, nationwide school closures, a new story is unfolding,” said AFC CEO Tommy Schultz. “Parents are rising up and demanding the freedom to choose the best educational environment for their children,” he said.
Biden’s recent action on OSP seems counterintuitive to public opinion.
So basically the hell with the kids. Hey Joe! … politics as usual?
OMG … OSP gone with a mere wisp of Biden’s pen!
I would have the inclination to call J.B. a ‘gigolo’ … except that he is far far from young!
8/3/21
Dan, I couldn’t agree more with you on the school choice issue. A good education is the answer to ending the most appalling systemic, albeit racist issue in this country. That is, trapping predominantly Black and Latino inner city kids in failing schools.
order atorvastatin 20mg generic lipitor 20mg without prescription order lipitor 20mg
baycip us – buy sulfamethoxazole generic order augmentin generic
brand ciprofloxacin 500mg – cephalexin 125mg cheap order augmentin 625mg pills
buy generic metronidazole 400mg – buy generic zithromax zithromax 250mg pills
ciplox 500mg sale – buy ciplox 500 mg without prescription buy erythromycin
generic valtrex 1000mg – buy cheap generic valacyclovir acyclovir 400mg uk
ivermectin 6mg pills for humans – amoxiclav cheap buy tetracycline online
buy flagyl 400mg generic – order cefaclor sale buy azithromycin 500mg generic
purchase ampicillin buy penicillin pills for sale purchase amoxil online cheap
furosemide 100mg drug – candesartan 16mg pill buy capoten generic
glucophage over the counter – metformin 1000mg generic order lincocin 500mg for sale
buy retrovir 300mg pills – epivir 100 mg cost zyloprim 300mg oral
purchase clozaril generic – purchase pepcid pills order pepcid 20mg online
buy quetiapine no prescription – buy venlafaxine eskalith price
clomipramine drug – purchase celexa without prescription buy doxepin 75mg generic
cheap hydroxyzine – purchase pamelor sale buy amitriptyline 25mg generic
brand amoxil – cephalexin 125mg oral buy ciprofloxacin without a prescription
brand augmentin 1000mg – acillin pills buy baycip generic
cleocin where to buy – buy chloromycetin without prescription buy chloramphenicol tablets
purchase zithromax without prescription – buy generic tetracycline how to buy ciprofloxacin
oral stromectol cost – ivermectin 12mg online cefaclor 250mg usa
order ventolin 2mg generic – allegra over the counter where can i buy theo-24 Cr
buy generic desloratadine – buy antihistamine pills albuterol 4mg canada
medrol 4mg tablets – buy generic fml-forte over the counter where can i buy astelin
order micronase 2.5mg generic – glipizide us forxiga order online
prandin 1mg drug – jardiance 25mg generic order jardiance 10mg generic
glycomet uk – metformin 1000mg without prescription acarbose sale
lamisil cheap – grifulvin v order online grifulvin v over the counter
oral rybelsus 14 mg – glucovance uk order DDAVP for sale
ketoconazole 200 mg without prescription – buy lotrisone paypal purchase sporanox without prescription
order famvir 250mg – buy zovirax 400mg generic order valcivir 500mg online cheap
lanoxin us – buy dipyridamole 25mg generic furosemide online
microzide 25 mg generic – hydrochlorothiazide 25mg drug order zebeta 10mg
lopressor pill – order metoprolol 50mg online buy adalat sale
nitroglycerin price – diovan 80mg cheap buy valsartan 160mg sale
rosuvastatin online closer – ezetimibe online protest caduet online plunge
zocor easy – tricor vein atorvastatin backward
viagra professional online rough – super kamagra scarlet levitra oral jelly online quiet
priligy skirt – zudena scatter cialis with dapoxetine past
cenforce force – levitra professional perfect brand viagra pills folk
brand cialis carry – zhewitra inside penisole song
cialis soft tabs online delay – levitra soft online serious viagra oral jelly online child
brand cialis hair – forzest coach penisole screen
cialis soft tabs online pretend – cialis oral jelly tick viagra oral jelly card