School Choice & Charters

Spotlight Focuses on D.C. Vouchers

By Erik W. Robelen — May 18, 2009 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

For such a small program, the private-school-voucher initiative for the District of Columbia has been getting an awful lot of attention lately.

One of its longtime champions, Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman, I-Conn., convened a May 13 hearing during which he made the case for extending the life of the federally funded program, which President Barack Obama recently proposed to phase out.

The D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, established as a five-year pilot in 2004, now serves some 1,600 low-income students in Washington. The program has become a focal point of debate nationally between voucher supporters and opponents.

In its fiscal 2010 budget proposal, the White House is, essentially, seeking to grandfather in those students who already attend private schools courtesy of the federally funded vouchers—but not allow any new students to participate.

Caught in the debate “are real people, real parents who want the best for their children, real students with all of the ability that God gave them,” Mr. Lieberman said at last week’s hearing of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which he chairs.

Among the panelists at the hearing were the parent of a child in the program, a student currently receiving a voucher, and another who previously did.

“Receiving a scholarship was a blessing for my family and put me on the path to success,” said Tiffany Dunston, who recently graduated from Archbishop Carroll High School, in Washington, and just completed her freshman year at Syracuse University.

Sen. Lieberman lamented that some of those invited to testify who were likely to bring a more skeptical view of the voucher program had not agreed to come. Among them: representatives from the two national teachers’ unions.

A spokesman for the NEA said the union’s president was not available to attend the hearing. A spokeswoman for the AFT said the same, though the AFT did submit written testimony.

A version of this article appeared in the May 20, 2009 edition of Education Week

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
The Future of the Science of Reading
Join us for a discussion on the future of the Science of Reading and how to support every student’s path to literacy.
Content provided by HMH
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
College & Workforce Readiness Webinar
From Classrooms to Careers: How Schools and Districts Can Prepare Students for a Changing Workforce
Real careers start in school. Learn how Alton High built student-centered, job-aligned pathways.
Content provided by TNTP
Student Well-Being Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: The Power of Emotion Regulation to Drive K-12 Academic Performance and Wellbeing
Wish you could handle emotions better? Learn practical strategies with researcher Marc Brackett and host Peter DeWitt.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

School Choice & Charters Spotlight Spotlight on The Landscape of Charter Schools
This Spotlight explores the dynamic and evolving world of school choice, focusing on charter schools and private school choice programs.
School Choice & Charters Opinion The School Choice Landscape Is Shifting
What could two Supreme Court rulings—one recent and one impending—mean for educators and parents?
8 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
School Choice & Charters What the Research Says How School Choice Complicates District Bond Elections
Families who transfer children out of their residential districts may be less likely to vote in bond elections, researchers find.
3 min read
Photograph of a person in jeans walking on a sidewalk and passing a yellow and black voting place sign in the grass.
E+
School Choice & Charters What to Know About the Private School Choice Program Moving Through Congress
A new federal program would offer up to $5 billion in tax credits a year to fuel private school attendance nationwide.
10 min read
Penelope Koutoulas holds signs supporting school choice in a House committee meeting on education during a special session of the state legislature Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn.
Penelope Koutoulas holds signs supporting school choice in a House committee meeting on education during a special session of the state legislature Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. While a number of states, including Tennessee, have passed new programs funding private school tuition in recent years, the first major federal foray into private school choice is now making its way through Congress.
George Walker IV/AP