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1. HRCollins
   Member

   Many citizens are concerned about what they see as overcrowding of the District 96 classrooms.

   One solution might be the issuance of school vouchers to use at the students' parents see fit. Based on the most recent data I can find Dist 96 spends about $13.6 million a year on about 1450 students.

   If Dist 96 gave 50 vouchers at 3k each it would reduce the overall Distrcit 96 budget by just over 1% but reduce class size by about 1 student. Also District 96 spending per child would also increase by approx. $300 per student.

   Seems a good trade off to me.

   Posted Saturday Mar 14, 2009 14:29 #

2. Catherine
   Member

   Hm, interesting. I guess there are some folks who would rather send their kids to Catholic School but can't, because otherwise who would leave our fine school district? That would probably step over the church/state line in too obvious a way though.

   I know they are not PC, but I support school vouchers as a general proposition. No one loves them more than parents and children in bad neighborhoods and dangerous school districts, and I have to go with what they think is best for them. Yes, all public schools should be better, but they are not yet.

   Posted Saturday Mar 14, 2009 14:38 #

3. HRCollins
   Member

   There have been many legal decisions about vouchers but the land's highest court decided that using vouchers for religious schools is OK.

   In July of 2002, as reported by CNN "the Supreme Court Thursday ruled that a school voucher program in Cleveland does not infringe upon the constitutional separation of church and state."

   Governments, for years, have been spending money on religious schools. A great example is the Pell Grant which a student can use at the school of their choice.

   Posted Saturday Mar 14, 2009 17:26 #

4. Catherine
   Member

   Yes, it is apparent it is not illegal. I believe the objection is people are worried the government will simply do this instead of meeting its obligation to provide a decent public education for all. So, the issue here would be if this was an appropriate way to deal with overcrowding. Since the school is excellent, I might be inclined to think not. I continue to see vouchers as an excellent way of escaping bad schools, for whatever reason they might be bad.

   I don't think the Pell grant/college comparison is apposite. I venture that most people going to Georgetown, DePaul or Loyola have not been choosing them for their religious affiliation for some decades now. The voucher issue is much newer than that, and likely has been coming up because many people who are not Catholic now more frequently want to avail themselves of the excellence and value of the Catholic primary school system.

   Going to a Catholic high school is, I believe, still a stronger assertion of Catholicism than going to a Catholic college or, more recently, a Catholic primary school. For one thing, it is quite a bit more expensive than Catholic primary school, if I am not mistaken. I donate to a charity that helps young people to attend Catholic high school; the economy being what it is, parents cannot so well afford it.

   Posted Monday Mar 16, 2009 10:27 #

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