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Pritzker says he’ll immediately end “back-door voucher program”

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Illinois

* RGA…

Illinois Democrat gubernatorial candidate and heir to the Hyatt Hotel fortune J.B. Pritzker has had the privilege of attending some of the most prestigious schools in the country, including the private Milton Academy in Massachusetts and Duke University. But Pritzker has two words for students in Illinois who are trying to escape struggling schools to get a quality education like he had: “Too bad.”

Last year, GOP Governor Bruce Rauner worked to pass Illinois’ first school choice program, which provides tax credits for private school scholarships to help students-in-need. It’s already raised millions for low-income students. But at a press conference yesterday, Pritzker promised to “get rid” of the program “immediately.”

WLS-AM reports, “As for the new tuition tax credits for private and parochial schools here’s what Pritzker wants to do, ‘We’re gonna get rid of ’em!.’” Watch here.

J.B. Pritzker’s plans to end scholarships for students-in-need proves that he is out-of-touch.

* From the Sun-Times…

The Chicago Democrat said the Republican governor deserves no credit for the rest of the bill, since he’d vetoed it twice.

“Last year Bruce Rauner forced a school funding crisis on Illinois,” Pritzker said. “He vetoed critical school funding legislation, stuck a back-door school voucher program onto the bill. And then he vetoed yet another school funding bill. Rauner has taken every opportunity to jeopardize funding for our schools, destabilizing our education system and creating division in our state.” […]

“Well, if you veto it twice, I’m not sure how you get credit for it. The truth is that it was [State Sen.] Andy Manar’s bill. It was Andy Manar who fought for this for six years, and it was over the objection of Rauner and the Republicans who voted against it, that they actually got the thing passed,” Pritzker said. “I’m not sure once again how the governor can claim any credit for it. To me when you put commercials on like he did, claiming credit for something you veto, and that you held hostage for so many months, it seems to me that you don’t get to take credit.” […]

“He vetoed initial versions in order to negotiate a better final product — which he successfully accomplished by creating the tuition scholarship tax credit program to benefit low-income students,” [Rauner campaign] spokesman Will Allison said in an email.

* WLS Radio…

As for the new tuition tax credits for private and parochial schools here’s what Pritzker wants to do, “We’re gonna get rid of ’em! I think diverting money away from public schools right now to private tuition tax credits seems like a really bad idea.”

His opponent, Republican Governor Bruce Rauner responded, “It’s shameful for Pritzker to say he would immediately end the scholarship program when so many low-income students will soon be benefitting from a better education. It’s clear Pritzker is out-of-touch with struggling families who can finally choose a brighter future for their children.”

CBS 2’s story prominently featured a staunch neo-Confederate, so I’m not linking to the piece.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 9:51 am

Comments

There goes the Catholic League football and basketball coach vote.

–“He vetoed initial versions in order to negotiate a better final product — which he successfully accomplished by creating the tuition scholarship tax credit program to benefit low-income students,” [Rauner campaign] spokesman Will Allison said in an email.–

LOL, That’s one way of looking at it. Demented and sad, but one way.

In reality, the small-potatoes program came from nowhere as a face-saving out for Rauner because he and BTIA(TM) had no clue as to what they were doing
with the amendatory veto and jeopardized schools opening on time.

The footage of Rauner’s deer-in-the-headlights, flop-sweat press conference where reporters schooled him on the consequences of his actions remains a classic.

“Simple majority…..simple majority….”

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:04 am
The Constitution guarantees a free and appropriate public education. If a person wants their child in a private school, they pay for it. I see the voucher system as an unneeded expense.

Comment by Retired Educator Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:07 am
Politics aside, this scholarship program helps many low-income families. If you want to find more money for CPS, Peel back the layers of bloat at central office. How do I know, you ask…?

Comment by How about this one? Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:07 am
==How do I know, you ask…?==

We didn’t.

Comment by Arsenal Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:17 am
I would question how much political appeasement has do do with this position.

Comment by People Over Parties Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:18 am
I guess that’s one way to get Cardinal Cupich to lay off Rauner, even after Rauner misled Cardinal Cupich and sighed HB40.

Also…

For the 652nd time…

School funding, property taxes, vouchers, “any and every”…

Rauner clouted his denied Winnetka-living daughter over a worthy Chicago child.

You want the discussion to be about “equity” or “fairness” or Rauner choosing “winners and losers” in schools and options… and local control and funding thru high property taxes…

… Rauner is a hypocrite, who, when no one was looking, gamed a system for his own personal gain.

Rauner cares about students. His own students, but…

Making this about the funding and where Rauner is failing the public schools and helping special interest private schools is missing an easy framing to tie loose ends.

Comment by Oswego Willy Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:19 am
==We didn’t.==

Afraid of what you’ll discover. Thought so. Carry on.

Comment by How about this one? Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:19 am
All we have to do is look to our east and see what a voucher program does for “poor” children…their public school is decimated and the richer kids are the majority who receive vouchers…and in the charter schools that cater to “poor” children(aka minority), there is little to NO difference in grades, in fact some get worse.

Comment by Union Thug Gramma Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:21 am
This will recoup 1% of the total education funding. #problemsolved

Comment by City Zen Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:24 am
==Afraid of what you’ll discover.==

Don’t worry about my feelings. Say what you know. So far, you’re saying nothing, which leads me to conclude…

Comment by Arsenal Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:24 am
I think these tax credits should be suspended at least until the state pays off the Rauner debt.

Comment by A Jack Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:27 am
JB should be a little careful how many small (or maybe not so small) blocs he’s willing to part with early. Graduated tax plan will cost him the suburbs. This move might be viewed as Anti-Catholic. It’s more than coaches who will think so. Those are folks in his natural base he’s kissing good bye to. Rauner is no prize to be sure, but if he stays out of the way of JB, he’ll have enough disgruntled voters handed to him. This is a stupid, stupid move on JB’s part. The public schools got more than a full sandwich on that bill. This has no potential to help him and plenty to harm him. E-1 if you’re scoring at home.

Hard to believe we have 2 completely inept campaigners to choose from. Ugh.

Comment by A guy Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:31 am
Hopefully J.B. will eventually listen to the families (many of whom are Hispanic and African Americans) who will benefit from this program.

Comment by Chicago Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:32 am
I’m going to go with my parents opinion on this one. They sent all their kids to Catholic schools and had strong feelings about paying property taxes and tuition. Yes, it was their choice but they still felt it was unfair.

When it comes to school vouchers, I think it should be an all or nothing approach. If you are going to have vouchers, it should be universal. Eliminate all per student related payment that goes directly to schools and give every kid a voucher that can be spent at the school of their (parents) choice, public or private. The first few years may be ugly, but it should force the underperforming schools to up their game.

And if you aren’t going to do a 100% voucher system, then there should be zero vouchers.

Comment by RNUG Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:34 am
– How do I know, you ask…?–

You could just make your case. The suspense is unbearable.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:34 am
Can he just kill this on his own or would he need legislative approval?

Comment by OneMan Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:35 am
== There goes the Catholic League football and basketball coach vote. ==

Really well played, word.

I’m kind of agnostic on the scholarship/voucher program. It had to be thrown into the mix to help save the governor from himself. Though, it would have been nice if at least a subject matter hearing was held on the concept before it became law.

Comment by Telly Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:38 am
Dumb move #1 and counting.

Comment by blue dog dem Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:39 am
Offering “choice” is a Libertarian strategy to defund, destroy, and privatize public institutions.
They started with schools and now they’re working on the V.A.

“I don’t want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub.”

Comment by TinyDancer(FKASue) Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:45 am
==Dumb move #1 and counting.==

Oh please, this is hardly his first dumb move.

And I’m not even sure it’s that dumb. There’s a big enthusiasm gap on this issue. the Antis are real fired up about it, while the pros are pretty passive.

Comment by Arsenal Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:46 am
Psst……
School choice is not about choosing different teachers.
School choice is about choosing a better educational environment. Responsible parents want their children in classroom occupied by children of other responsible parents.
I’m in our educational system every week. Students of irresponsible parents send their child to school without any regard for authority, rules or self-discipline. At the same time, responsible parents, across the spectrum of economic background, are seeking an environment where their children can learn. Without school choice, levels of learning are too often dictated by the least responsible parent.

Comment by Downstate Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:49 am
@- How about this one? - Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:07 am:

===Politics aside, this scholarship program helps many low-income families. If you want to find more money for CPS, Peel back the layers of bloat at central office. How do I know, you ask…?===

OK, EXACTLY how do you know?

Comment by DuPage Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:49 am
What is a Neo-confederate? that is a new one to me.

Comment by 44th Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:53 am
–When it comes to school vouchers, I think it should be an all or nothing approach. If you are going to have vouchers, it should be universal. Eliminate all per student related payment that goes directly to schools and give every kid a voucher that can be spent at the school of their (parents) choice, public or private.–

I think they just called up the PTA militias at New Trier, Stevenson, Hinsdale Central…..

Heck the parents at Hinsdale Central don’t want the kids from Hinsdale South going to their school. You think they’re going to take travelers from out-of-district?

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:57 am
I second RNUG on this.

My problem with public school monopolies is the monopoly part. Monopolies tend to slow innovation and provide poor service to their captive customers.

Comment by Last Bull Moose Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:57 am
== I think they just called up the PTA militias at New Trier, Stevenson, Hinsdale Central….. ==

As long as it isn’t nuns with rulers. We might have to pass a ban on assault rulers …

Comment by RNUG Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:03 am
==As long as it isn’t nuns with rulers.==

It’s very difficult to find either one of these in a school today.

Comment by A guy Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:17 am
“As long as it isn’t nuns with rulers” You’d ban The Penguin? What about the Jakes and Elwoods of the world?

Comment by Skeptic Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:25 am
A neo-confederate? Sounds like a cleaned up way of saying an anti-black bigot.

Comment by capitol view Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:27 am
==Monopolies tend to slow innovation and provide poor service to their captive customers.==

Albert Shanker attempted to address that problem, but his solution has been hijacked by the small government folks.

Albert Shanker’s original charter school concept was to improve public schools by creating charter schools that would be incubators of educational innovation - free of bureaucratic constraints which would empower teachers to be creative and transfer successful methods to public schools.
Charters were intended to improve public schools - not replace them.

Comment by TinyDancer(FKASue) Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:30 am
Not sure how taking away a significant chunk of revenue will allow “the underperforming schools to up their game”. One of the primary reasons they are underperforming in the first place is these schools lack the resources necessary to help their students overcome the structural disadvantages they face on a daily basis.

Comment by Dance Band on the Titanic Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:34 am
–What is a Neo-confederate? that is a new one to me.–

They’ve been around in one form or another since April 10, 1865. If someone will give you directions to your local library, you can get a card for free.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:42 am
==School choice is about choosing a better educational environment.==

It’s just coincidence that the environment is demographically homogeneous and free from struggling learners.

Comment by Jocko Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:43 am
= Without school choice,=

Everyone has school choice. You can move. That may not be cost effective, but no one said it had to.

@RNUG- If I were to support any voucher approach (I am not, but if) it would be all or nothing. Word was right though, some districts employ people to investigate residency issues. The New Trier’s of the world do not want CPS kids filling up their classrooms. Sad but true.

Comment by JS Mill Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 11:47 am
Let’s remember that under the education funding reform that was passed last year, a permanent hold harmless was done for every school district in Illinois. So this tax credit program is not taking a single penny from any school. This is simply allowing poor families that ability to apply for a scholarship to send their child someplace else. Public schools aren’t losing dollars here, even if their student population drops.

Comment by SuburbanRepublican Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 12:01 pm
–Word was right though, some districts employ people to investigate residency issues.–

The last few years I had a kid at Oak Park-River Forest, you had to show up in person with mortgage/tax bill/lease documentation, utility bills, and picture ID.

It would all get copied at one station, then you sat down for a chin-wag with an off-duty Oak Park detective who looked it all over. Mind you, this is my third kid, they’d all gone to Oak Park schools only, and I’d been in the same house for 25 years.

So yeah, some schools don’t want out-of-district kids.

Unless they can ball. Believe me, that happens in public schools, too.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 12:02 pm
==When it comes to school vouchers, I think it should be an all or nothing approach.==

Same with taxing income. All or nothing.

Comment by City Zen Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 12:22 pm
==Albert Shanker attempted to address that problem, but his solution has been hijacked by the small government folks.==

Shanker’s union failed miserably at running their own charter in NYC. Who’s hijacking whom?

Comment by City Zen Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 12:28 pm
@suburban republican- I don’t believe that is accurate- the hold harmless was only for a couple of years. Then all bets are off.

Comment by JS Mill Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 12:34 pm
Surprised at this quote regarding looking east: “their public school is decimated and the richer kids are the majority who receive vouchers. . .” This is not possible with the Illinois program. Do some research–check the income eligibility chart and the list of districts that are eligible based on general income levels. You have to have both financial need and be from an eligible district. While not a perfect bill, it is providing a great deal of hope for some of the lowest income families in our west side neighborhood.

Comment by Rosa Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 12:42 pm
=Shanker’s union failed miserably at running their own charter in NYC. Who’s hijacking whom?=

Today’s charters are more like selective enrollment schools than what was originally envisioned.
Shanker proposed that new charters should target the hardest-to-educate students: those who had dropped out or were failing. He never imagined that charters would have a selection process or that charters might avoid students with disabilities or English-language learners as is now the case in many charters.

Comment by TinyDancer(FKASue) Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 12:50 pm
Thanks. Take a look at starting salaries of Chief’s and assistant chiefs in all departments and cross-reference those against Peers’ in private sector. Now, cross-matrix that with employment experience prior to joining CPS. Still following? Good. FOIA the expenditures for conferences and out of town “training” and relish in the fact that you have now uncovered enough dough to fund special Ed teachers or librarians for 10 schools. Also, examine the community outreach and communications contracts and their efficacy. Woah! You now have enough to implement more STEM opportunities throughout the district. Etc, etc.

Some of us have actually seen these things. We just don’t hang out anonymously behind our keyboards. Also, politics aside.

Comment by How about this one? Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 1:04 pm
==or that charters might avoid students with disabilities or English-language learners as is now the case in many charters.==

Which is exactly what Shanker’s failed United Federation of Teachers’ charter did.

Comment by City Zen Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 1:04 pm
===We just don’t hang out anonymously behind our keyboards.===

Says the goofball posting with a pseudonym.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 1:09 pm
Politically a bad idea. Private school folks are politically active and can sway votes.

Practically, losing upper tier students to private schools hurts public schools because their scores drop when their best students get syphoned off.

If it is about poor students getting a good education why don’t theses schools just give scholarships to poor kids.

Prohibit kids that use vouchers from playing sports and you will see how much the schools care about the socio-economic opportunity. You don’t have to look farther than the IHSA football playoffs to figure this out.

Comment by the Patriot Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 1:11 pm
–This move might be viewed as Anti-Catholic.–

No hesitation to go there.

How many Catholics are participating in this program?

The archdiocese of Chicago has 76,000 students enrolled in their schools.

I’m guessing there’s a few more Catholic students enrolled in public schools in Illinois.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 1:26 pm
Late to the thread, sorry.

Previous comments have jumbled together wealthy public school districts which try to ensure no out-of-district students can enroll, charter schools (i.e., public schools which are privately operated, either for-profit or not-for-profit depending on the charter granted), and voucher schools.

This program is only for the third of these, and will be applicable only for “scholarships” to private schools, period - so no publics or charters are involved directly.

In Illinois, “voucher schools” pretty much = Catholic schools. And “Catholic schools” pretty much = “Chicago Catholic schools,” whose enrollment has plummeted over the past decade or so.

We shouldn’t imagine that recipients will be attending selective/exclusive private institutions, whose tuition is far more than the approx. $13,000 or so that will be the max allotted. They will attend Catholic schools and a much smaller number of private Christian schools.

The path to educational equity in Illinois was shown by SB 1947. Until its passage, Illinois’s state funding of its schools was the most inequitable in the country.

Pritzker’s stance is not a backward-looking one; rather, it’s in line with the most up-to-date and informed education research nationwide.

Of course, if one doesn’t believe that public schools should even exist (the stance of the U.S. Sec of Ed), that’s a different issue.

Comment by dbk Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 1:28 pm
Wow dbk, you just saved me a whole lot of typing.

I could walk to my public k-8 school, where I learned (some) Latin, the Dewey Decimal System, square dancing and the 3Rs. That’s pretty much what I want every kid everywhere to be able to do. I don’t know why this is so hard anymore.

Comment by Cheryl44 Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 2:43 pm
To the Patriot–”Why don’t these schools just give scholarships to poor kids?” Do you think we don’t already do that? But that money comes from tirelessly seeking donations and asking our teachers to work for significantly less than their public school peers. We can’t raise enough to meet the needs of all the low-income families seeking a stronger educational environment for their children. One person responded that they should just move, but that is a pretty simplistic statement that doesn’t take into account the systemic barriers faced by many families. Re: the comment on syphoning off top students, my experience with urban Christian schools over the past thirty years is that we enroll students with a wide range of academic needs each year and don’t cherry pick. I’m surprised by comments that assume that the schools are homogenous and have no struggling learners. That’s not the case for most of the urban schools I know.

Comment by Rosa Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 3:16 pm
We have made schools harder. Consider these changes
1. Mainstreaming special ed students. Add an autistic child to the classroom, two with ADD, and one with Down’s syndrome. These children were not in regular classes when I was in school. It makes teaching more difficult.
2. Give women the options to be engineers and lawyers. Then wonder why teachers seemed smarter when that was all women could do.
3. Lose consensus on what should be taught in History, Civics, and Social Studies. Create alternative courses and wonder why we lack a common core of knowledge.
4. Have an explosion of knowledge in the sciences and try to sort out which things students should know.
5. Have more families headed by single parents and watch home support drop. (Not knocking single parents. Just saying it is hard. )
6. Add more rules , regulations, and layers of management and support. Then see efforts go to compliance before effectiveness.

Life was simpler when schools were smaller and marginal people and views were excluded. In some ways today is better. In others it is worse. And the changes that help one student may hurt another.

Comment by Last Bull Moose Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 3:32 pm
What a shock- Guess the IEA and IFT must have moved in to the campaign offices

Comment by Sue Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 5:32 pm
The great thing about living to a ripe old age is you realize that we actually are doomed to repeat ourselves.

I am not foolish enough to believe that these funds are going to be used to open the flood gates for poor, minority students from Chicago to attend private schools.

Parents currently sending their kids to private schools and struggling to pay their tuition are not gonna be happy with paying full boat while a bunch of other kids — particularly black and brown kids — come to school for free.

Chicago ain’t Boston, but it isn’t Sesame Street either.

Remember: there is no requirement in the bill that all the money or even a portion of the money be used for full scholarships. I expect the majority of scholarships will actually be partial tuition scholarships.

Secondly, you can bet the archdiocese and a few others will use these funds to quietly subsidize a tuition hike. After all, what parent can really object to a $500 tuition hike when the school is handing out $1000 scholarships?

Third: the abuses of this scholarship program will make the abuses of the General Assembly scholarship program look tiny by comparison. Atleast with the GA program, names of scholarship winners were public, and reporters could connect the dots. Nothing about this program will be subject to rigorous FOIA.

Fourth: polling is on Pritzker’s side. the public hates “vouchers”, they hate “privatization” of public education, and they especially hate anything that diverts money from their neighborhood schools to private schools.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 7:03 pm
@RNUG:

Here is an idea: why doesnt the Catholic church just make education at all of its schools free?

If the church would just stop charging tuition, and ask everyone to donate to the best of their ability, that ought to fix everything.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 7:14 pm
-Yellow Dog-

They kind of did that at one point, just collecting the tuition as (tax deductible?) “voluntry contributions” from the parents to the parish.

The IRS was not amused and came down on the practice. I suspect they wouldn’t like your suggestion either.

Comment by RNUG Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:34 pm
== That’s not the case for most of the urban schools I know. ==

-Rosa-, I can tell from personal experience that the Catholic schools do cherry pick, and discourage any special needs students from attending. My high school ran my son out. I knew the right people to clout him back in, but choose not to do so. And, as a former alumni who used to contribute, they haven’t received a single dollar from me since then.

Comment by RNUG Wednesday, Apr 4, 18 @ 10:42 pm
==Which is exactly what Shanker’s failed United Federation of Teachers’ charter did.==

@City Zen
Link, please.

Comment by TinyDancer(FKASue) Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 12:38 am
–Link, please.–

“UFT charter meted out corporal punishment to 4.4 percent of special ed students. Given that special ed kids accounted for just nine percent of UFT Charter’s students (which, by the way, is lower than the 13.1 percent average for Big Apple charters and 16.5 percent for the traditional district), the damage meted out by the school and the union to the special ed kids who were enrolled in its schools is just plain inexcusable.” http://dropoutnation.net/2015/03/04/afts-charter-school-hypocrisy/

Comment by I'm helping Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 7:53 am
==Link, please.==

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/errol-louis-uft-charter-school-flunked-article-1.2134925

https://nypost.com/2015/02/27/state-forces-brooklyn-charter-school-to-close-its-doors/

Comment by City Zen Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 8:28 am
=There goes the Catholic League football and basketball coach vote.=

is kind of an awful thing to say.

Vouchers are awful and bad, unless you have a kid stuck in a failing school. N/A to commenters here.

Comment by A State Employee Guy Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 9:31 am
–Vouchers are awful and bad, unless you have a kid stuck in a failing school. –

You have information on who’s receiving these tax credits and the students who are benefiting from them? Please share.

Comment by wordslinger Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 9:36 am
I’d add, SEG, that athletic boosters at parochial schools have been covering the costs via “scholarships” for some exceptional athletes for quite some time. No secret.

Comment by wordslinger Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 9:39 am
1) If you think telling me that schools providing scholarships somehow absolves you from saying “har har coaches pluck poor black kids to play sports har”, then I just don’t know where to start with you.

2) Data from Indiana’s system—one of the largest choice systems in the nation, if not the largest, as a % of the state’s students as a whole—show mixed results initially for voucher kids, but suggest that the longer voucher kids stay in private schools, the better.

The program is for low and moderate income families; 90% coverage for low income families, more than half of whom were kids of color.

Comment by A State Employee Guy Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 10:11 am
–1) If you think telling me that schools providing scholarships somehow absolves you from saying “har har coaches pluck poor black kids to play sports har”–

I don’t believe I require absolution (and certainly not from you) for something I didn’t write. (Perhaps you missed those years in school when they explained quotation marks).

What’s your usual penance for bearing false witness against your neighbor?

Comment by wordslinger Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 10:25 am
I pray to the Flying Spaghetti Monster that he may provide me with the strength and courage to deal with people who are Dumb Online.

Comment by A State Employee Guy Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 10:29 am
–I pray to the Flying Spaghetti Monster that he may provide me with the strength and courage to deal with people who are Dumb Online.–

I’m sure you need all the help you can get. Now go and sin no more.

Comment by wordslinger Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 10:42 am
@City Zen

Sigh

Comment by TinyDancer(FKASue) Thursday, Apr 5, 18 @ 11:46 am