We’ve looked at how many public schools are letting your kids down in a number of ways. Whether it is how they teach the basic subjects, or what they teach in addition to or instead of the basic subjects, parents are concerned about what kids are learning—or not learning. At least one state put its foot down.
An article titled “Arizona school choice law sets new standard for nation” by Benjamin Toma says Arizona’s new Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) is the “gold standard” of school choice policies.
Toma is the majority leader in the Arizona House of Representatives and the sponsor of the legislation. He stated:
We are now the first state with a truly universal ESA program. Essentially, parents who apply for an ESA may direct about $7,000 to expenses like private school tuition, homeschooling expenses, educational therapies, and tutoring in exchange for not attending a public school or receiving a tuition tax credit scholarship.
School choice opponents have been wrong for decades. Each advance is doggedly opposed because they know parents won’t easily relinquish freedom once enjoyed. Cynically, each proposal will be opposed under the guise that past expansions are now sufficient. In Arizona, there isn’t a politician of any stripe that would now dare publicly oppose open enrollment or charter schools; it’s woven into our fabric.
Representative Toma said there were a lot of people who thought it would be impossible to pass such a bill with the Republicans having only a one vote advantage. He proved them wrong. So does that mean all the kids will be going to charter or private schools now? Hardly. He is certain that ESAs won’t impair the functioning of public schools. He believes this action will actually improve public schools. He gave the reason for believing that:
In Arizona, we showed lawmakers the data: though more than 250,000 students are currently eligible, just 11,000 or so use an ESA after a decade of existence. In areas with great public schools, there are often few ESA users.
After years of unlimited district open enrollment and the highest percentage of students in charter schools in the nation, choosing your child’s school – instead of being directed by the government – is the norm here. The results: Arizona schools lead the nation in academic growth for both poor and nonpoor students per the Stanford Opportunity Project.
We invested more than $1 billion in our school finance formula this year, most of which was to show holdouts that we weren’t giving up on our public schools and were willing to deal. We were able to make that investment knowing it was buying radical reform, not because we were caving to cries from the Left about school funding. We know those demands are eternal. We remain focused on improving outcomes and making choice a reality for all students.
It helped to have a Governor who was in accord with the idea of school choice. “This session, let’s expand school choice any way we can,” declared Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey in his State of the State address on Jan. 10, “Let’s think big and find more ways to get kids into the school of their parents’ choice. Send me the bills, and I’ll sign them.”
As of September 24, 2022, 100 percent of students statewide are eligible for this new program that will provide as much as 90 percent of the amount the state spends on each student. “State estimates project that typical ESA students will receive about $7,000 annually as of 2022-2023, but students with special needs get significantly more.” Because a majority of ESA students have special needs, the average ESA in 2021–22 was more than $15,000.
Parents have to agree to certain requirements:
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Parent must sign an agreement to:
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Provide an education in the subjects of reading and grammar, mathematics, social studies and science
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Not enroll the student in a school district or charter school
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Release the school district from all obligations to educate the student
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Not accept a scholarship under Arizona’s general tax-credit scholarship programs
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Use the money deposited in the ESA for purposes specified in the law and spend accumulated ESA dollars on basic education subject[s]
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Does this sound good to you? Would you like this available to your kids? Then write or call your State representative and let them know it matters to you.