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Statement By Anne L. Bryant, Executive Director, National School Boards Association

Posted on: Wednesday, 2 November 2005, 18:01 CST

WASHINGTON, Nov. 2 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Following is a statement by Anne L. Bryant, executive director, National School Boards Association:

"Tomorrow, the U.S. Senate, while considering the budget reconciliation bill, is expected to vote on a hurricane relief amendment that has, unfortunately and unnecessarily, become a vehicle for creating potentially the largest, costliest private school voucher program in U.S. history.

"The original proposal, S. 1904, was misguided and not in the best interest of our public schoolchildren. The new amendment is even worse. It still contains private school vouchers, yet also reveals a partial retreat in providing much-needed funds to damaged and destroyed public schools, as well as for public schools around the nation that have taken in students displaced by the recent devastating hurricanes.

"Tomorrow's vote comes on the heels of the Senate's passage of the education appropriations bill last week that included barely noticeable increases for critical public school programs such as Title I and IDEA that help millions of children nationwide. It would also occur at a time when Congress, through the budget reconciliation process, may well set the stage for several years of lower funding for public schools nationwide.

"The National School Boards Association understands and applauds the desire of lawmakers to help schools that have enrolled students displaced by the hurricanes. Public schools around the nation, but especially in the Gulf Coast, have needed that help for several weeks. Congress can help our schools and avoid creating a new bureaucracy to funnel federal tax dollars to private schools. Lawmakers can help private schools by following the existing Title I "equitable participation" model that authorizes school districts to provide private schools with educational services, but does not transfer dollars to the private schools. This model has worked for 40 years, does not require the creation of a new bureaucracy, does not establish a national voucher program, and maintains the public accountability that vouchers lack.

"Just last week, the House education committee, in a bi- partisan vote, rejected a hurricane relief plan for schools because it included private school vouchers. That mirrors previous votes by Congress, which has rejected repeated attempts to create a national voucher program because it recognizes vouchers for what they are: poor public policy that does not address the needs of students attending our public schools. We hope the Senate will agree tomorrow."

The National School Boards Association is a national federation of state school boards associations that represent more than 95,000 school board members who govern the nation's public schools. The organization's mission is to foster excellence and equity in public elementary and secondary education throughout the United States through local school board leadership.

http://www.usnewswire.com

Source: U.S. Newswire

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