It's not over

The dust has settled and teachers unions have claimed victory over vouchers after Referendum 1 was defeated in a 62 to 38 percent margin. What they don't realize is that was not the end of the war--it was only a battle. If a business had 62 percent satisfaction from its customers, would we consider it successful? We should not be satisfied with mediocrity--especially concerning the education of our children. If public schools work for most children, that's great, but if some children's needs could be better met in private schools at around the same cost or less, why not? In addition, charter school legislation failed more than once in Utah before it passed. Vouchers have much more support now than they did before the referendum and the support will continue to grow until it passes. More parents now realize that if they are not satisfied with the academic, behavioral, or moral environment of public schools, vouchers would give them new options.

The main reasons for the opposition could easily be eliminated. They included lack of:

1. an income cap
2. an accreditation requirement
3. a teacher minimum education/licensure requirement
4. a religious prohibition

The major complaints seemed to be lack of an income cap and a minimum education requirement. Those could easily be changed (although Bill Gates is a college dropout and probably could do alright teaching technology courses, so it might make sense to include an "or equivalent" caveat to a bachelors degree requirement). The accreditation and licensure requirements continue to give the unions too much influence and set up unnecessary barriers to entry. Unless we are willing to eliminate laws that allow Pell Grants, Stafford Loans, and Utah's Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarships (vouchers) to go to religious schools, there should be no religious prohibition. Opponents argue that public schools need more money for teachers, but if they will cut back on administrative costs and set up a merit pay system, there should be plenty of money available for the best teachers. As the last legislative session showed, legislators will also be more likely to put more funding into public education if they see effective reforms taking place. For now, though, it might be good to focus on increasing the quantity and quality of charter schools, teacher performance pay, and other education reforms. Take the poll to the left and vote for which reform you feel would be most effective. Here are some examples of options that are already out there:

Utah County Academy of Sciences

K12.com virtual school

Coming soon: K12.com technology charter school