County Issue / School Vouchers :...

Steve Magoon, Parent and Buena High School math teacher

I do not. The problem with the initiative, from what I’ve heard, is it doesn’t make provisions for all of the schools to provide the same programs, such as special education. Not every private school would be required to have special education classes. In that case, those parents would still have to send their children to public schools. If the best and brightest might be siphoned off because parents have the erroneous opinion that private schools are better, the public schools will become a dumping grounds for those who can’t afford transportation to private schools. I don’t think the voucher system improves education whatsoever. Because they’ve invested money in private schools, parents are more concerned about their children’s education. If all kids in public schools had that much parental attention, they would be better able to reach their potential.

Robert L. Plunkett, Head of Ventura County Parents for Educational Choice

Absolutely. I think that every day we get more news about the critical state of education in America, especially in Los Angeles, and I think that the root cause is the fact that the school system has become a government monopoly. It is a product that people are required by law to buy and pay for, and the people who are in charge of it--the government bureaucrats--do not suffer if the educational system doesn’t meet the proper standards. The only way to correct that is to make the schools accountable and empower the parents so they can choose the education they want for their children. With the parents’ choice initiative, parents would get a tuition voucher in an amount that is actually higher than the tuition charged at some private schools. After World War II, we had the G.I. Bill for college kids, and it turned out to be a great thing. The parents’ choice initiative is the G.I. bill for children.

Dolores Didio, Member, Conejo Valley Unified Board of Education

No, I don’t. They’re mixing the voucher system with choice. The people want choice, but they are using the voucher system to make their choice. It could be very detrimental to public education. The public schools are expected to provide education for all students while private schools have the opportunity to exclude students. There is no provision that guarantees non-discrimination in admission policies on the basis of gender, religion, physical disability or a student’s academic ability. So how can you put them on equal ground? I’m concerned there won’t be accountability for the private schools that may crop up because of the voucher system. It will have a financial effect on the public schools. Because of the way it’s structured, it will ultimately decrease the overall dollars that are presently provided for public education. Let’s not be too hasty in jumping into something that may look good on the surface.

Dennis Rice, Director, Happy Valley School in Ojai

I am in favor of the voucher system, with reservations. I believe that parents should have a choice, yet I believe that all of the private schools are cautious about external intervention. I believe that the guidelines set up by the government are realistic in that they don’t give money to schools that discriminate or teach hatred. Government money often means government guidelines. Even though the public looks upon independent schools as being private schools, they see themselves as being independent. The voucher system concept is excellent if it works for the parents and the children. If it works to bring independent schools under government control, it wouldn’t be good. The initiative has to be written so that independent schools can maintain their independent nature. The initiative will challenge the public schools to become more responsive to the interests of the community, and I think it will give parents a choice.

Hal Vick, Executive director, Simi Educators Assn.

No, I don’t. I don’t see that it’s going to benefit the students of California. It seems to me that, if you’re going to allow private schools to collect vouchers, they should be subject to the same rules and regulations. My understanding is it would allow private schools to not have to take special education students. That’s unfair. With little or no due process, students could be excluded from private schools. One example would be severely handicapped students. Those students are very expensive to educate, costing nearly twice the amount of money the state provides. If private schools are able to collect vouchers and don’t have to take special education students, public schools will have to make do with even less. If you’re going to have a voucher system and the rules are the same, then public schools can compete. Schools already have a funding shortage, and this could mean 10% to 15% less funding for public schools.