Why I Struggle with NC Politics Right Now- School Vouchers

This post is not about our house, just as a warning. You are about to delve into the mind of an educator who believes in public education, in the right to that education, and also believes that if you are able, you should be helping the needy. So I'm talking politics today. Just remember I'm not an expert, I just believe that everyone should get and deserves a good education. I dread Thursdays because I know I'll find out what happened in the Legislature on Wednesday, and no matter how hard I pray it seems that it always ends up being bad news overall. Like passing the initial vote on the motorcycle helmet law (I can't even write about it without getting angry), or deciding that Water quality in some parts of NC is too high a priority so we're going to pass a law to literally lower standards for drinking water. But I think the School Voucher Debate takes the cake. First, I'll touch on my understanding of the school voucher (please, correct me if I'm wrong): Instead of money being directly funded to public schools, part of the money allotted for schooling would be given to some low income families in order to afford their children the opportunity to go to a private school instead of a public school . So families would be given approximately $4200 to send their child to a private or charter school. Here's the quote from the News and Observer on Tuesday: The bill would spend $50 million over two years on vouchers: $10 million in the next school year to send 2,000 students, and $40 million the following year for an additional 7,000 students. The Senate did not include money for vouchers in the budget it passed last week, but the grants may find a receptive Senate audience if the House approves them. Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/05/29/2923711/vouchers-bill-which-would-help.html#storylink=cpy I'm not sure if it would entail $4200 per child, but think it must. So parents would have $4200 to send their child to a private school. I think that probably seems like a lot of money to a family who is struggling financially, but in the private school world, that's a drop in the bucket. I'm not speaking about all private schools, I'm speaking about the better ones in the area I live in. My first question is: How would the rest of the expenses be made up? Here are some I'm thinking of: 1. Tuition: Most of the private schools in the area are not $4200. There are many that are above $10,000. So even with the voucher, in a $10,000/year school, parents would still be responsible for coming up with at least $5800 more for a year, per child, plus additional expenses. If you have 3 children, then the number jumps. One school in the article, Thales Academy, does have a very low tuition- around $5600/year, but I'm curious to know if that's an exception or a rule. 2. School Supplies: Since private schools do not receive state funding, many require parents to be responsible for purchasing all school supplies. 3. Breakfast: If you are a low income family on the Free and Reduced Lunch program, often your children will also be served breakfast at your local public school. I'm racking my brain trying to think of a private day school that also serves breakfast and can't think of any. So parents would be responsible for making sure their children got this important meal. 4. Transportation: Most private schools don't provide it, which might be difficult for a family with working parents. 5. Public Schools: while we were told that this money was not being pulled from the public school system, there were a ton of public school budget cuts in the budget released by NC. I wonder if the money for vouchers shouldn't be poured back into the system? I'm not saying this is either a good or bad idea, since I'm no expert in the field, but I am curious about how low-income families are going to pay for their children to attend private school when many of them seem to have a hard time with the minimal expenses in public school. As someone who works in a private school I think a myth needs to be debunked here: Private Schools do NOT have unlimited resources. Their tuition costs are just a small factor of the reality of how much it costs a school to run for a year. Sure, more affluent families may choose to send their children to private school over public school, but that is only a tiny piece of the private school pie. Donations and grants make up large portions of where funding comes from. I worry about whether families would feel extra pressure to somehow come up with the extra money to send their child or children to a private school because the voucher is offered. And that will definitely put a strain on many families. Now, I will discuss services. One of my friends is a special education teacher at a public school in Raleigh. On the side she tutors kids privately. One of the children she tutored had a learning disability and struggled in her excellent private school. Many private schools will offer some Academic Support, but not to the extent of the public school system. You aren't going to get to work with various coaches each day just because you have a diagnosis. Many private schools are also upfront about what services they offer. Private school families pay for their own tutors. Maybe I should have added to my extra expenses list. Many private schools also are unequipped to handle children with severe handicaps, so parents who believe their disabled children should be able to attend a highly ranked private school may find that the private school they thought of will not take them. Of course i'm not sure how this is going to be affected by the voucher- will private schools have to lower/change their standards to admit voucher students? Also, does this mean families can choose ANY private school to go to? I am from a rural NC county and many of the small, Christian schools that operate there are not accredited- which isn't a big deal in elementary school, but is when you are applying to college. One of the most important elements in the public school system is that there are standards that must be met. I love working at a private school in which I have the flexibility to come up with my own standards, but I also work at one of the best private schools I have ever come across and I know there are many that are not run the way they should be. It's just a concern that I think of. I also think that by placing religious private schools into the mix we are treading dangerously near the separation of church and state. As someone who is religious, I also believe that people should be and can be allowed their own beliefs, and that religious institutions should try and avoid taking money from state or federal governments. It becomes a tricky line and makes me nervous. Lastly, while there are many reasons a parent will choose to send his/her child to private school, these reasons always come up: Smaller class size, more opportunity, better relationships with teachers and administrations. In the public school system, if more money went into actual schools (not the Board or Dept of Ed), then maybe we could retain better teachers and have smaller classes. Taking money AWAY from the system is not going to help that cause. I guess I just wonder if the focus should be less on sending our kids out of the public sector, and more on making that public sector better. To add to that I want to point out that there are MANY stellar public schools. I mean, stellar. I've been lucky enough to work in a couple of them. And, the N&O says that money was not put into the budget for the voucher program. So where are the funds for this program coming from? To reiterate I'm not opposed to the program- I just think the guidelines should be clearer. I did a lot of searching and am still confused about what those are. So until someone can give me the actual guidelines and maybe a list of private schools who are participating, then I'm thinking it's not the best solution for our education system- which is NOT broken, by the way, but HURTING.