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From Washington: Dueling Voices on School Choice by Jennifer Marshall
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Written on 13-Jun-2008 by
JenniferMarshall
This week Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat speaking in Congress for the District of Columbia, declared war on the Washington, D.C. voucher program. "[T]he Democratic Congress is not about to extend this program," she predicted, as debate begins next week over the future of funding that currently allows 1,900 low-income children the opportunity to attend the school of their choice.
While Norton demands a return to the government education monopoly, parents and students organized by activist Virginia Walden Ford are speaking up to preserve the program, with a new Website called VoicesOfSchoolChoice.org.
"Parents have to know that they have the right to use their voices," says Ms. Ford. When they do, they prize everything from safety to culture to academics at their schools of choice. It's an interesting profile of consumer empowerment. Much of it would elude bureaucratic measurement, but all of it shows how poorly government schools had served these families.
Ayesha McKinney is thankful for the simple things--like clean bathrooms for her daughters. "There's no reason that children should have to be in an unclean, unsafe environment because it's very difficult for them to learn." Hidden talents are emerging as her children flourish in the safety of private school. Tatiana (14) has discovered a flair for interpretive dance and art. (See daughter Majeris sign the alphabet here.)
Since attending private school, Maritza White's son now dreams of becoming an astronaut, and "he doesn't have to worry about coming home with a bloody lip," like he did from his last school.
Wendy Cunningham visited multiple schools to find one that offered arts, music, and theatre. "I've always had a very, very strong passion for art," her daughter Jordan explains, but the D.C. public schools didn't offer it. At her new school, she has all kinds of art resources--charcoals, pastels, and acrylics--as well as access to courses at the world-class Corcoran Museum.
Pamela Battle researched schools and chose one of the best for her sons, "When you give a child a different environment, a different opportunity, they act different. They want more for themselves when they can see that it’s a possibility they can get more."
Her son Carlos thinks about the difference it would make if he didn't have the scholarship: "I'd probably be in the local high school--which is terrible…. I'd probably have to think more about protecting myself than learning."
If they took the scholarships away, they'd be "taking a lot of the kids' dreams away of becoming what they are: politicians, governors, even president."
"All those who oppose us, I think they should see the faces of the children," says Virginia Walden Ford. Former D.C. council member Kevin Chavous, a Democrat, makes the reasonable conclusion: "If you focus on what's best for children, it is absolutely impossible not to support school choice."
While Norton demands a return to the government education monopoly, parents and students organized by activist Virginia Walden Ford are speaking up to preserve the program, with a new Website called VoicesOfSchoolChoice.org.
"Parents have to know that they have the right to use their voices," says Ms. Ford. When they do, they prize everything from safety to culture to academics at their schools of choice. It's an interesting profile of consumer empowerment. Much of it would elude bureaucratic measurement, but all of it shows how poorly government schools had served these families.
Ayesha McKinney is thankful for the simple things--like clean bathrooms for her daughters. "There's no reason that children should have to be in an unclean, unsafe environment because it's very difficult for them to learn." Hidden talents are emerging as her children flourish in the safety of private school. Tatiana (14) has discovered a flair for interpretive dance and art. (See daughter Majeris sign the alphabet here.)
Since attending private school, Maritza White's son now dreams of becoming an astronaut, and "he doesn't have to worry about coming home with a bloody lip," like he did from his last school.
Wendy Cunningham visited multiple schools to find one that offered arts, music, and theatre. "I've always had a very, very strong passion for art," her daughter Jordan explains, but the D.C. public schools didn't offer it. At her new school, she has all kinds of art resources--charcoals, pastels, and acrylics--as well as access to courses at the world-class Corcoran Museum.
Pamela Battle researched schools and chose one of the best for her sons, "When you give a child a different environment, a different opportunity, they act different. They want more for themselves when they can see that it’s a possibility they can get more."
Her son Carlos thinks about the difference it would make if he didn't have the scholarship: "I'd probably be in the local high school--which is terrible…. I'd probably have to think more about protecting myself than learning."
If they took the scholarships away, they'd be "taking a lot of the kids' dreams away of becoming what they are: politicians, governors, even president."
"All those who oppose us, I think they should see the faces of the children," says Virginia Walden Ford. Former D.C. council member Kevin Chavous, a Democrat, makes the reasonable conclusion: "If you focus on what's best for children, it is absolutely impossible not to support school choice."
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