School Choice Video

St. Louis City NEEDS Education Options

A sad reality for the St. Louis city from the Suburban Journals:

An unseen line separates here from there. Yet this simple, intangible barrier causes strain on the lives of Kelly Polson and her family.

They live in Clifton Heights on the western edge of the city. It's their home and they love it, but with a second son entering Catholic high school and the first of two young daughters readying for pre-school, they have a decision to make. Do they stay and pay tuition or move to St. Louis County to take advantage of the public school options offered there?

With the high cost of Catholic education, Polson would choose public schools in the city, if she thought they were working. She doesn't.

"I realistically cannot send my boys to St. Louis city public schools," she said. "We want to stay in the city. We love our home. It's just the schools are the problem. It's a constant conversation in our house of what we're going to do."

Families have been having similar conversations for years. A large number of them leave the city.

Charter schools have taken some of the enrollment, but not all, said Dan Schmidt, a demographer who worked on the report.

"Children are being born that are leaving the district before they enter a school there," Schmidt said.

The migration to the county started in the 1970s, said Robbyn Wahby, education liaison for Mayor Francis Slay. Even looking at the decline since 2000, Wahby said 9,000 of the students lost went to charter school, but the rest went to the county.

"The greatest competitor to the St. Louis Public Schools are the 25 school districts in the county," she said.

Tracy Garrett, head of school at St. Louis Charter School, said while some parents have chosen charter schools, she is concerned that people are still leaving. A lot of the students who leave the charter schools go to the county, she said, but some never enroll.

"You have young people moving into the city, starting their families and just when they're starting to be a little more economically stable, they move," Garrett said. "They feel they have to move."

Much of the concern comes from parents who are aware of the district's turnover of superintendents and the former feuding of the elected school board, said Kathleen Sullivan Brown, an associate professor in the college of education at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

"Parents would look at that and say, 'I don't want to necessarily start my child in a system like that and have to deal with that for all the years my child has to be in school,'" she said.

People have a negative perception about the district, Sullivan Brown said. If people have the financial resources to pick another option, they do.

"If people have no options, the local school is where they have to send their children," she said.

The bottomline: Families need school choice options. Charter school expansion needs greater support. The SLPS district needs reform. And the St. Louis community desperately needs better education options!

School Choice in Columbia

Columbia Public Schools board member Ines Segert has been receiving criticism lately for her decision to enroll her son in the private Columbia Independent School.

The quality of education at this school is revered throughout the community. Which is obvious given the fact that parents, including Dr. Segert, think it is worth 10 grand a year per child.

Dr. Seger's decision reminds us of the importance of fairness in Missouri's education. As legislation currently stands, Charter Schools (or free public alternative schools) are not allowed in Columbia (or anywhere in the state for that matter--besides Kansas City & St. Louis). Therefore, those that can not afford the cost of private institutions are basically stuck, leaving parents powerless against poor performance or unmotivated teachers.

This controversy can also be used to illustrate that school choice efforts SUPPORT public schools. When parents are given options, ALL schools are held accountable, therefore public schools improve and all children are better educated!

School choice must enter any public and political discussion on education!


School choice up to parents

School Tax Credits Help Kids and the State

The financial slowdown is prompting many families who can no longer afford both taxes and private school tuition to move their children into public schools. The accelerating closure of private schools in urban areas will only add to the pressure. Public schools will suddenly need to spend more -- even as tax revenues drop. With this kind of budget problem, lawmakers need to take a look at an important benefit of programs that make it easier for families to choose private schools: School choice means huge savings for state and local governments.

There is a way to avoid getting slammed by huge new demands for public school spending while saving money and improving education: A broad-based, moderate-size education tax credit would help families stay in private schools and save their children from burdening taxpayers with the public schools' (much greater) price tag. The credit would also help others make the switch to the private sector, easing the burden on taxpayers even more.

Education tax credits reduce the amount a taxpayer owes the government for each dollar one spends on his child's education or on scholarships for children who need them. That money comes straight off a person's tax liability, so it's a dollar-for-dollar benefit: You can send it to the government or use it on the kind of education you want to support. Tax credits for donations to scholarship organizations help support school choice for lower-income families.

Legislators and overburdened taxpayers have literally $millions$ of reasons to support school choice!

School Tax Credit Can Help Kids and the State by Adam Schaeffer of the Cato Institute's Center for Educational Freedom.

Black Neighborhoods Support More Parental Options

Matching Missouri's 2007 Show-Me institute research, parents in Virgina have high levels of dissatisfaction with their public schools and overwhelmingly support school choice for parents.

The majority black neighborhoods favored a variety of educational reforms including tax credits for personal or corporate donations to K-12 scholarship funds, grants to allow students with disabilities to attend the private school of their choice and public charter schools.

It is inspiring to see this support for fairness of opportunity through school choice. And it is time to provide new options for Missouri children at risk of failure, regardless of ethnicity or income. Give the people what they need!

Survey conducted by the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy and the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO).

Read More on the Issue

Home Schooling is on the Rise

KSDK Report

Research shows over 1.5 million children are being home-schooled nationwide.

Though traditionally they were seen just as conservative Christians, the survey proved that more and more families are utilizing home-schooling as a means of school choice. Home school can help ensure personal attention and provide an option outside of the public schools.

Theses options are the key to school improvements and ensuring every child receives a proper education.

Charter School Expansion Statewide

Bills were prefiled for the next congressional session, which starts January 13. One in particular (Senate Bill 64), expands the current charter school law to any place with "school districts that are not classified as accredited" (as opposed to just the St. Louis and Kansas City areas).

This extension will add an aspect of statewide fairness and significantly improve opportunity for many children. These parents will no longer be stuck in ineffective schools because of this much-deserved school choice!

School Choice: What's Your Style?

Every school has its own personality and unique teaching policies—just like every student has their own personality and unique learning style. The better these match up the more effective the education. All the more reason why parents should be able to choose the school that fits their child best.

Check out a Wall Street Journal Blog about the different criteria parents look for in a school.

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AFT Endorses UNfairness

The American Teacher Federation agrees that the Obama's "have every right to make a decision that works for their family and their kids" when it comes to education BUT both AFT and the president-elect still do not support school choice for anyone else. How is this fair?! It is not.



Okay for Obamas to Send Their Kids to Private Schools, Teachers’ Union President Says

Charter School Interest Grows in Columbia, MO

Current state law only allows charter schools in St. Louis and Kansas City, which is simply not fair!

As a previous blog notes, Columbia Public schools are failing to educate all students adequately. However, most families (especially those with lower income) lack any practical alternative.

There are two people in particular that already expressed interest in providing Columbia parents greater options through charter schools. Myke Gemkow, who plans to open a private Montessori school for low-income children, would definitely look into charter school opportunities. And Joelle Quoirin would open a French immersion school.

Charter schools have proven to produce positive results. A Harvard University researcher found that students in charter schools score significantly higher on reading and math tests than peers in traditional schools. Furthermore, charter schools are among the top performing schools in the Kansas City and St. Louis areas when it comes to Missouri Assessment Program test scores.

Basically, Missouri needs expanded charter school laws for equality for parents and children!

Read the Columbia Tribune Story.

Artistic School Choice Video

Though 'voucher' has been turned into a dirty word, the underlying school choice theme behind a voucher system is a desirable and actually necessary aspect for any real education improvement.

The video uses simple and artistic means to convey the benefits of competition and accountability. Because parents want only high-performing schools for their children, only those schools that achieve at the top level (and continue to maintain impressive results) will survive. And obviously, any school system that grants ALL children a proper education is the common goal driving families, educators and politicians in the area of education reform.

National School Choice Campaign

School choice deserves support!

Many groups and individuals are passionately crusading for improvements in education through school choice. The Alliance for School Choice launched a new Let Parents Choose campaign last week with a goal of enlisting 10,000 school choice activists.
Registering at www.letparentschoose.org will get you free school choice bumper stickers, handbooks and magazines. There is also a place for sharing your story, donating money, reading up on education research and social-networking though a facebook group.

Another aspect to the campaign is aimed at not allowing shocking and disturbing statistics of failing public schools go unnoticed. For example, Approximately 4 million children are attending underperforming schools in America, despite the best efforts of many educators. What's more, a child drops out of school every 26 seconds!! That adds up to more then 1 million drop-outs every year!

School Choice for the Obama Family

As the Obama’s move into the white house they will face the same decision of millions of families across the county will encounter—what school can offer the best education for their children?

Public schools are, of course, the first option. But if these schools are constantly failing to produce results, then this is hardly a contending alternative at all. In fact, being stuck in a public school is more like a parental nightmare!

In some lucky cities there is the publicly funded, privately run option of charter schools. (Obama has thankfully supported this form of parental choice). However, admission is by random by lottery and slots fill up extremely fast.

The other alternative is private schools. Obviously, the Obama’s can financially afford this school choice option, however many families simply can not. The predicted private school decision of the Obama’s will shed pertinent light on the lack of fairness in America’s educational system.

With the future president determining that private schools offer their children superior education, will he still maintain his stance against all private schools voucher models? How could he deny low-income families the same opportunities his children are enjoying? Do his kids deserve more and better opportunity then those with less fortunate economic family circumstance? These questions display the obvious importance of parental school choice.

Clearly it is only morally fair to offer every parent the ability to choose the best for their child. It is extremely important that every child is offered opportunity beyond their family’s income level. Therefore, school choice is the only way to instill the ethical principle of fairness into the education system, while reaping the rewards of improved schools and more educated children!


Want More?

The Chicago Tribune has a comprehensive story on the Obama family and presidential school decisions.

USA Today offers an in-depth look at the specific school options the Obama's will have.

And the Wall Street Journal has a popular blog on the issue.

Columbia Public Schools are Failing Black Students

The Columbia Daily Tribune: News Story or Blog

The Board of Education dedicated at the meeting last night that the Columbia Public Schools were failing its black students. White students are significantly outperforming their black peers on MAP scores and other achievement statistics throughout the state. However, when comparing achievement statewide based on race, Columbia’s black students are doing well below the state average, while the Columbia’s white students are doing above (which NOT correlate with income level). This means the city suffers from an especially large racial achievement gap.

While it is good that these problems are not being ignored, it is extremely important that something is done about these unfortunate statistics. Every student deserves a proper education! In the face of several failed reforms, school choice remains a viable answer. School choice encourages parents to take an active role in their child’s education by empowering them with options. School choice would, more importantly, offer families outraged at this data the ability to make the proper changes for their children.

Charter Schools Offer Choices for KC Parents

The parental choice that charter schools offer is becoming an increasingly enticing option for Kansas City families—as 15 percent more students enrolled in charter schools this year.

Charter schools are run by independent boards. This often allows them freedom from ineffective bureaucratic administrations—leading to more efficient fund management and specialized policies. In fact, charter schools are held accountable for maintaining this effectiveness through basic market forces. Parents would not bother to enroll their children in a charter school if at any point they believed the regular public schools would better serve their child. Charter schools also force parents to become more actively involved in their child’s life—significantly improving discipline, by comparison.

Because of the many benefits of school choice--specifically through charter schools--it is extremely promising to see these statistics in Kansas City. According to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, around 23 percent of schoolchildren in Kansas City public schools are getting their education at one of the city’s 18 public charter schools—which totals about 7,000 students. That puts the city sixth among U.S. communities in the percentage of public school students enrolled in charter schools.

“Charter Schools on the Rise in KC”—the story from the Kansas City Star

Compition Factor of School Choice

When going down the cereal isle at any grocery store there is hundreds of different brands to choose from. Why are these companies always coming out with new flavors, improved ingredients and tempting ascetic gimmicks? The answer: COMPETITION. This same marketplace philosophy of improvement though choice MUST be applied to Missouri schools.

With parental choice options public schools will be forced to finally begin must needed system-wide revamping to maintain students. Private schools will also be motivated for high-quality achievement in order to entice local families. With a school choice model, children win. They would no longer be stuck in failing schools.

Some try to argue that school choice will hurt public schools—which is simply not true! Great schools will not be affected. (Aren’t there still Cheerios and Wheaties?). It is only the schools that are currently unacceptable that will be forced to improve.

Though the future of our children is obviously an extremely more important and sensitive subject then breakfast food, today’s economy forces even the most passionate institutions to face this market-driven society. The bottom-line is: our children deserve a first-rate education and this is possible using school choice!

School Choice: A Market Approach to Education Reform

We can't rule out school choice

The issue of school choice was brought into the public forum by way of the courts this week. A judge dismissed a case of families seeking reimbursement for their tuition to send their children to a public school outside the unaccredited St. Louis Public School District. Though a retrospective lawsuit (that could unpredictably lead to infinitely more cases) is not the way to bring about this reform—the issue of parental choice is serious and extremely necessary! Parents deserve options in the face of failing schools—despite their financial conditions. Plans have been developed for Missouri using economically sound and empirically-proven methods. It is important for parents, the public, school officials and government politicians to come together behind school choice reforms—therefore creating the educational improvements our children deserve.

The St. Louis Post Dispatch news coverage

School Choice for Cape Girardeau School

Parents of children attending Cape Girardeau’s Jefferson Elementary school will have the choice to either keep their child in the school, which did not meet targets set by No Child Left Behind, or transfer their child to another, better-performing school, according to the Southeast Missourian.

http://www.semissourian.com/article/20080807/NEWS01/173356109/-1/news01

“Every transfer request will be granted. Letters outlining the procedure to request a transfer are being mailed today. Parents will have to fill out a single form ranking their alternate school choices. Every transfer request will be granted. Letters outlining the procedure to request a transfer are being mailed today. Parents will have to fill out a single form ranking their alternate school choices.”

Though it is a tragedy children have been underserved by Jefferson Elementary School, at least families have been given a choice with regard to the circumstances. This was not true in the unaccredited Saint Louis Public school district, which has developed into an even greater tragedy beginning to reach epic proportions.

Although the choice Cape parents have as far as other schools is limited, it is better than no choice at all. We applaud the school districts effort in doing this, but are still concerned about the trend of failing schools in our state.