Is 2007 the Year for School Vouchers in Utah?
None by KCPW
(KCPW News) School vouchers are a top priority for Republican leaders in both the Utah House and Senate this year, giving the controversial topic significant weight. House Speaker Greg Curtis believes his son would have benefited from a voucher or tax credit to pay for private school education:"Why not give it a shot? It's not going to destroy the public education system," says Curtis. "We need to deflect the emotion of the debate. For me it's about providing families alternatives."
Backers of the voucher movement were one of the biggest political investors in legislative campaigns during the November election. Recipients of that money are in line to sponsor this year's version, which will offer an average student voucher of about 25-hundred dollars depending on income. Proponents say the state will save money because the voucher amounts to far less than it costs to educate a child in the public school system. The PTA and Utah Education Association are vehemently opposed to the idea.
"The PTA agrees with Parents for Choice on a few things: there's a lot of misinformation out there and we need to trust our parents," says Utah PTA Spokesperson Holly Langton. "We're a parents association and our parents are telling us they want their money to go into public schools and programs."
A Deseret Morning News survey found 54 percent of Utahns would "definitely" or "probably" oppose giving families vouchers with public school money to help pay for private school tuition.
Email to a friendPosted in KCPW Newsroom and Legislative Coverage. Copyright 2008 KCPW
1. nancy kay said:
You quoted an old stat in your story. The DNews just came out with a new poll yesterday. The majority of Utahns support vouchers.
http://www.kcpw.org/article/2637
And as for the PTA--they've drunk the koolaid of the UEA--and choice threatens their power structure. More money has yet to improve education. Charters and private schools do much more with much less and the kids are better educated...
3. Wells Bagley said:
I don't think the number of private school students is going to change. To take money from the public school and give it to a private one would decrease the amount the public school has. Also, is the voucher going to be given to students who go to a church school? If so, that is against the consitiution of a division of church and state, isn't it?
2. Carl Mitchell said:
As I read it, under the Urquhart draft bill K-12 school spending by Utah will not change during at least the first five years under the "choice" scenario. The state will continue to fund the same number of students and at the same "weighted pupil unit" cost. This same "weighted pupil unit" for a private-school (formerly public-school) student would be divided -- part going to the private school and the rest going to the public school from which the student was transferred.Therefore, how does the "private school choice" bill reduce education cost to the state?