Pence accomplished what Trump wants for national education: Vouchers and charters
by Emma Brown and Perry Stein
The Washington Post
November 11th, 2016
As governor of Indiana, Mike Pence accomplished what his new boss, President-elect Donald Trump, now wants to do nationwide: Expand taxpayer-funded vouchers and charter schools to give more parents choices beyond traditional public schools.
Trump has proposed a new $20 billion federal program to encourage school choice nationwide. Details are thin — and Trump’s team has not said where the federal government would find the money — but vouchers and charter schools are likely to be a priority for the incoming administration, and perhaps not just for children from poor families, but also those with means. Vouchers allow parents to receive public funding to help them move their children out of their school districts and into the private or parochial schools they prefer.
“Donald Trump and I both believe that every parent in America should be able to choose where their children go to school, regardless of their income and regardless of their area code, and public, private and parochial and faith-based schools on the list,” Pence said in September, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.
The Obama administration and many Democrats have been staunch supporters of charter schools, and equally staunch opponents of vouchers, viewing them as a drain on public schools that serve the majority of the nation’s children. Advocates for vouchers now see an opening for change.
“It’s an extraordinary opportunity for far-reaching education reform,” said Jeanne Allen, founder and CEO of the Center for Education Reform, a pro-charter, pro-voucher advocacy group.
To read the full article visit The Washington Post.
