| 1. |
Less Money for Rural Schools
There is only one “pot” of state money in Texas to fund education. If an
increasing percentage of that pot goes to pay for vouchers for private
schools in urban areas (where most of the private schools are located), then
there will be less state money for public schools in rural areas. That means
less money for teacher salaries and benefits, less money for facilities, less
money for technology, textbooks, and instructional materials.
|
| 2. |
New Private Schools Will Open
There may not be private schools in most rural communities now, but there
will be if vouchers are approved in Texas. Private schools will be open by
religious groups, for-profit corporations, home school groups, and more.
|
| 3. |
Franchised Private Schools
The special interests promoting vouchers include entrepreneurs who want to
open chains of franchised private schools in Texas. Many of these
entrepreneurs will target smaller towns where there are no private schools
now.
|
| 4. |
Loss of Support for Public Schools
With the opening of new private and religious schools in rural areas, there
will be a loss of support for public schools. Voters will vote NO in bond
elections for school renovations or construction, and they may say, “We don’t
need to add more classrooms...let’s just give out more vouchers.”
|
| 5. |
Smaller Public Schools Bring Problems
As public school enrollment drops in rural areas due to transfers to private
schools, many problems could result: more pressures to consolidate with
neighboring districts, a need to change districts for UIL competition (like
from 2A to 1A), not enough students to offer certain classes (like foreign
languages or advanced math and science) or extracurricular activities (like
orchestra or baseball).
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| 6. |
Vouchers for Home Schools Would Be a New Expense for Rural Taxpayers In Texas court cases, home schools have been ruled to be “private schools.”
It is likely that any voucher program would have to include home schools,
which would be a new expense for rural taxpayers.
|
| 7. |
Vouchers for Everyone
Special interests promoting vouchers in Texas said publicly they want every
child to be able to go to private school at taxpayer expense. Their
lobbyists have been quoted as saying they must start small with a voucher
pilot program, but then it would quickly be expanded to a statewide program
that would lead to the demise of many rural public schools.
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| 8. |
Urban Legislators Don’t Want Vouchers
Some rural legislators tell their constituents they don’t want vouchers in
their home communities, but they will vote for a pilot program to require
vouchers in urban areas of Texas. But, most legislators from urban areas in
Texas are adamantly opposed to vouchers for their schools. The greatest gains
in student achievement in Texas have been made in the state’s inner city
schools. Rural legislators must represent their constituents—not people who
live in Dallas and Houston—and they should vote NO on vouchers because of the threat they present to the survival of rural public schools. To do otherwise is to invite urban legislators to turn around and require school district consolidation in rural areas. |
