Yeah, I'm Pro Choice

[Pete]

Yeah, I'm Pro Choice

In schools that is........ I thought "Choice" was good.

"Ind. vouchers prompt thousands to change schools"

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9PD7A000&show_article=1


"SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) - Weeks after Indiana began the nation's broadest school voucher program, thousands of students have transferred from public to private schools, causing a spike in enrollment at some Catholic institutions that were only recently on the brink of closing for lack of pupils.

It's a scenario public school advocates have long feared: Students fleeing local districts in large numbers, taking with them vital tax dollars that often end up at parochial schools. Opponents say the practice violates the separation of church and state........................"

&

"....Interim Superintendent Carole Schmidt instructed principals to contact parents of students who are leaving to find out why and make a last pitch for them to stay. ....................."

[kgoerz]

Good for them. In a lot of places sending your kid to the public school. Is like driving him off a cliff.

[BigJimCalhoun]

Douglas County, Colorado did something silmilar and it was take to court and the county lost. We home-school anyway but I feel for those wanting to take advantage of the vouchers.

[Requiem]

We homeschool and receive an allotment of funds from the state to spend on our boys education the way we see fit. If we purchase materials with religious content however, the state will not cover those expenses.

If a parent takes a voucher and uses it for education in a religious institution the same rule should apply. That said, I do sympathize with parents who want their kids OUT of public school and into a private one. I'd be tempted to do the same with a voucher. Best of luck to them. It'll be interesting to see how this plays out.

S.

[BOfH]

I'm guessing Indiana isn't structured like most of NY, NJ and some other states, where your property taxes go towards education regardless of whether you use the system or not. It would be nice if they could pull this off in these areas, though it would probably never fly as the teachers unions are too strong and the ratio that the schools receive from the property tax revenue is set in stone, heaven forbid if you were to even think about changing it: "Just think of the children!"; Even though a sizable amount of public school teachers supplement their income and retirement pensions by teaching in religious schools in the afternoon, money funneled to private schools (As Gov. Christie in NJ proposed: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/09/gov_christie_signs_bill_allowi.html ) would benefit them(the teachers) greatly. Having gone through the Yeshiva system, I have to say, some of the best teachers I had were public school teachers. I get it, but I don't, I guess with this newfangled fuzzy math, 1+1 no longer equals 2. :confused:

[Badger52]

Opponents say the practice violates the separation of church and state........................""Opponents say the practice violates their practice of only being in favor of your ability to choose when it fills their ricebowl."

[Richard]

Allowing public funds to be used to support a parochial institution may cause a problem for a church's special tax status. :confused:

And as far as schools go, it's been my experience that parents should pay less attention to the category - public or private, charter or parochial - what matters most is the individual school. People make a mistake to assume that because a school costs more, it will perform better; or because it costs less, it will perform worse.

However, being able to choose the school which best fits your preferences and your child's talents and passions is IMO a good thing.

Richard :munchin

[Doc Diego]

Less students in public schools means less crowded classrooms for the public school teachers. It's a win-win...
The vouchers are a return of your property taxes earmarked for public schools, so if it's a parochial school who cares, it's your money.

[BOfH]

That's the problem, once I give it to them, its no longer my money, and I have no say as to where it goes. I send my children to a private school due to religious practices, and it would be nice if some of that money could go to the school that my children actually go to...