by David Shane

Created on: May 10, 2009

When it comes to discussing the federal government disbursing vouchers for school choice, the only place to look is that district they personally administer, the District of Columbia. And it is there that President Obama, working with Congressional Democrats, recently decided to stop issuing any new vouchers through the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program. But why was this done, and was it the right decision?

The argument in favor of allowing school vouchers is very simple; if you are allowed to pick a school for your child's education, you can pick a good one, or one attuned to your child's needs or learning style. LendingTree likes to say that "when banks compete, you win," and the same is true of schools. And, since everyone pays property taxes to support your local public school district, if makes sense to get some or all of that money back if you choose to send your child to a private school, or perhaps even to a public charter school.

But did the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program work? Indeed it did. Perhaps all the proof you need is the fact that the program has had four times as many applicants as vouchers to award. Studies have shown that those who have been in the program the longest made gains in reading achievement of two years versus those not in the program. And even better, the amount of the voucher is only $7500, while the DC public schools spend over $15000 per pupil! The DC school system ranks 51st nationally in student achievement despite the enormous amount of money it spends, and the voucher program offers students an escape that improves their learning at a lower cost.

So why did Democrats in Washington kill the program? Well, I'm not entirely sure, but none of the reasons I can think of are very noble, and none of them puts the education of children first. Obama in particular has already shown himself willing to harm others to protect union interests, most recently in his threats to withhold stimulus funds from California for cutting the wages of certain unionized health care workers, and killing the DC voucher program may just be another example. Teacher unions whose members staff public schools have long opposed vouchers that could send students elsewhere, just as they fight basing teacher pay on student performance. But this isn't a good thing. The DC voucher program gets results, and deserves the federal government's support.

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For basics on the voucher program and many of the facts used here, see Voices of School Choice. For more on the DC voucher program's success, read D.C. Opportunity Scholarships Boost Reading Scores, Family Satisfaction. For more information on unions and education, see The Union War on Charter School Annotated.

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