School Choice and Ownership Society Continued from page 1... Page: 1, 2, 3

Isn't school choice a conservative "right-wing" idea?

No. Support for school choice crosses political, racial and income boundaries. Early efforts to pass school choice in Milwaukee were led by state senator Polly Williams, an African-American Democrat. Other prominent people who have supported school choice include Democratic mayor of Washington, D.C. Anthony Williams, California Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democratic Senator Joseph Lieberman, and Floyd Flake, former 11 term Democratic Congressman from New York City. School choice is a bi-partisan issue supported by people from a variety of political, racial and income boundaries. Most importantly, school choice is supported by parents who want greater ownership and control of their children's education.

Isn't school choice just a tax break for the rich?

Wealthier families can already exercise school choice either by sending their children to private school or by purchasing a home near a good public school. It is low-income families who are forced to send their children to failing schools, and haven't the means to relocate or afford a private school. Easing the financial burdens imposed on parents who want more options allows everyone-wealthy or poor-to exercise the basic right of school choice.

Does the public really want school choice?

Numerous polls conducted over the past several years show that most Americans support school choice. For example, the 2003 Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup poll found that 62% of Americans would use a full tuition voucher to send their child to a private school. Another poll by the First Amendment Center found that 62% of Americans agree that parents should have the option to send their children to non-public schools using vouchers. These findings mirror polls conducted in 2000 by the Washington Post, the Pew Research Center and NBC News, which found 49%, 53% and 56% respectively, support school choice.

Among blacks and Hispanics, support is even higher. The 2002 national opinion poll by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Study found that 57% of blacks support school choice and 75% of blacks under 35 support it. Also, a recent Washington Post poll about vouchers found that 60% of black residents in the District of Columbia support school choice.

Hispanic support is also high. A 2003 poll by the Latino Coalition found that 56% of Hispanic adults support allowing low-income parents to use taxpayer funded vouchers for private schools. The Joint Center's 2002 poll found 66.8% support for school choice among Hispanic households with children.

Aren't private schools unaccountable to the public?

Competition ensures that all schools are accountable to those who matter most-parents and students. Parents who have choice in education can "vote with the feet" by sending their children to another, better school when the current school isn't performing. Private schools must succeed to stay in business.

Private schools are also subject to basic regulations governing fire, health and safety, and are routinely held to the same or higher standards of performance than are government run schools. Most private schools are accredited by national, regional, or state private organizations. Parents can then take a particular school's accreditation status into consideration when whether or not to enroll a child.

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