IES Releases Condition of Education 2013 Report
The Institute of Education Sciences and the National Center for Education Statistics have released... Read More
Obama’s Ed Budget Has No Room For DC Voucher Program
Obama’s 2013 Department of Education budget fails to fund Washington D.C.’s Opportunity Scholarship Program, despite his promises and the program’s successes.
The Department of Education’s 2013 budget will not provide funding for the D.C. voucher program despite a promise Obama made last April in a budget agreement he signed that helped avert a government shutdown, says the American Federation for Children (AFC).
The D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP) currently provides scholarships to more than 1,600 low-income children to attend the private schools of their parents’ choice.
Kevin P. Chavous, a senior advisor to AFC and a former D.C. Councilman, said:
“The president says he’s for education reform, but his actions continually aim to send low-income and minority students back to schools that are failing them academically, are unsafe, or are otherwise not meeting their needs.
“This latest hypocrisy is just the most recent instance in which the president has stood in the way of students who are improving test scores and graduating in higher numbers.”
Obama barred new students from applying to the OSP after 2009.
Chavous said:
“By any reasonable measure, the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program has been an overwhelming success.
“President Obama wouldn’t be where he is today without a private school scholarship. He needs to stop playing politics and do what’s right for kids.”
Since the program’s inception in 2004, more than 10,000 families have applied to participate in the OSP.
Lindsey Burke at The Heritage Foundation’s Foundry blog believes that in this budget snub, the President is standing against low-income children in Washington, D.C.
“His 2013 budget request zeros out funding for the highly successful D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, which was revived last year thanks to the hard work of Speaker John Boehner and the thousands of D.C. families who received scholarships to attend a private school of choice.”
In April 2011, Speaker John Boehner managed to secure the restoration and expansion of the D.C. OSP under President Obama’s nose. Many considered this to be a significant milestone in the “Year of School Choice.”
“The President’s budget request signals that his administration is more interested in propping up a government school system than providing options for children to receive a quality education,” writes Burke.
Under the OSP, student achievement has increased, and graduation rates of voucher students have increased –with students who used a voucher to attend private school had a 91 percent graduation rate.
“Regardless of the prospects of advancement for the budget request, elimination of funding for the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program shows that the Obama administration is not interested in funding “what works.” If the move is not a concession to education special interest groups, the administration should explain why they have placed this critical school choice program on the chopping block.”
Wednesday
February 15th, 2012
Recent News
iNeuron Brings Neuroscience Education to Mobile Devices
Minneapolis based consulting and research firm Adventium Labs has developed an educational iOS game... Read More
South Carolina Considers Dropping High School Exit Exam
It seemed like less than a decade ago that the popularity of high school exit exams was at its... Read More
Popular News
James Shuls: Why We Need School Choice 26
The Pedagogical Agenda of Common Core Math Standards 23
Movement Against Standardized Testing Gaining Strength 18
More groups are saying that the time and expense dedicated to standardized testing is having... Read More
Career Index
Plan your career as an educator using our free online datacase of useful information.
- Select a City Subject
- Business Schools in Albemarle
- Business Schools in Asheboro
- Business Schools in Kinston
- Business Schools in Murphy
- Business Schools in Whiteville
- Business Schools in Wilmington
- RN to BSN Schools in Alexander City
- RN to BSN Schools in Andalusia
- RN to BSN Schools in Auburn University
- RN to BSN Schools in Bay Minette
- RN to BSN Schools in Birmingham
- RN to BSN Schools in Boaz
- RN to BSN Schools in Brewton
- RN to BSN Schools in Dothan
- RN to BSN Schools in Florence
- RN to BSN Schools in Gadsden
- RN to BSN Schools in Hanceville
- RN to BSN Schools in Huntsville
- RN to BSN Schools in Jacksonville
- RN to BSN Schools in Jasper
- RN to BSN Schools in Livingston
- RN to BSN Schools in Mobile
- RN to BSN Schools in Monroeville
- RN to BSN Schools in Montgomery
- RN to BSN Schools in Muscle Shoals
- RN to BSN Schools in Phenix City
- RN to BSN Schools in Rainsville
- RN to BSN Schools in Selma
- RN to BSN Schools in Tanner
- RN to BSN Schools in Troy
- RN to BSN Schools in Tuscaloosa
- RN to BSN Schools in Tuskegee
- RN to BSN Schools in Wadley
Comments
[...] http://www.educationnews.org Posts Related to Obama’s Ed Budget Has No Room For DC Voucher ProgramJudge Rules in Favor of [...]
American Federation for Children is just an astroturfing pro-charter group. No wonder they are complaining since they are getting hit in the pocketbook.
Oooh I noticed you managed to quote the Heritage Foundation too! Why not the John Birch Society? Nice, balanced piece this is!
“propping up a government school system”
or you mean making sure there is an effective well funded school system for everyone that isn’t dependent on the whims of private funding?
[...] D.C.’s Opportunity Scholarship Program, despite his promises and the program’s successes.”(more) Comments (0) Go to main news [...]
I wonder when the “sock-puppets” will start commenting about how unfair this is to “poor for-profit charter schools.”
Obama made a comittment to fund this program and it’s been doing good things for kids who take advantage of it. Seriously? You people can’t look past your ideologies to even admit that?
and the sock puppet has spoken
charter schools are no more effective then public schools, yet we keep dragging money away from public schools to fund them, which makes the public schools worse and unable to meet the needs of the children left behind. who typically have more needs since their parents are not the type motivated enough to get them into a charter school.
can’t you see past your ideology and admit that?
No he can’t. The only reason he is here is to troll against public schools and public school teachers. He has no real connection to education, he just wants to “bear false witness” against teachers to further his (or his organization’) goals. Thats what a sock puppet does. It’s intellectually dishonest and morally bankrupt.