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DEAR EDITOR:
Will Ohio fund schools and prioritize education or prioritize funding parental choice? The Parental Educational Freedom Act (Senate Bill 11) would have the money follow the child, not to rescue the child from a failing school, but instead to "guarantee parents the right to choose the school that best fits their child's needs," as Sen. Sandra O'Brien, bill sponsor, states.
What is the cost of the Parental Educational Freedom act that increases tax credits for home schooling and provides Ed Choice Scholarships for students to attend private schools? Raising income level for eligibility for a family of four from those earning up to $75,000 to $120,000, and increasing from $250 to $2,000, tax credit for home schooling a child would cost taxpayers $570 million, according to estimates by the Ohio Legislature, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Commission.
Why would we direct funding to individuals and not to fully funding the Fair School Funding Plan that includes both public school students (1.6 million) and public charter school students (33,000)? The bipartisan Fair School Funding plan is based on the actual cost of educating a child and local share on ability of the local district to generate revenue (only 60 percent property and 40 percent income), and directly funds charters, rather than removing money from individual districts.
Why is funding parents and not the schools who serve student needs a bad idea? First, public schools are subject to public oversight. Home schools and other private schools, whether religious, for-profit, or sectarian, have no elected school boards subject to Ohio's Sunshine Laws. Nor is there public accountability for the dollars received. We have not been able to monitor the present system that supports ed choice. The state still is owed over $16 million that ECOT collected for students who never attended. White Hat Management walked off with a number of taxpayer dollars in my community. A neo-Nazi "Dissident Homeschool" Telegram channel distributed lesson plans to 2,400 members.
I may not choose to use public transportation, but I cannot expect the public to buy me a car or subsidize my choice to walk. If parents are concerned about the schooling their child receives, they need to listen to both the teachers and their children, and provide the child the support needed to succeed. We need to come together as a community, not only because it is cost effective, but also because we need to learn to live and work together if we are to preserve our democracy.
Public schools provide more than book learning. They help us develop the social skills necessary for life. They serve not only the individual, but the nation.
BARBARA BROTHERS
Dean Emeritus,
Youngstown State University