Vouchers

Education news, analysis, and opinion about public funding which can be used to fund students’ private school tuition

Explainer

What Are School Vouchers and How Do They Work?
Few topics in education incite as much debate as vouchers, which steer public money to families to pay for students to attend private school
Federal Trump Talks Up D.C. Vouchers Amid Questions About Their Academic Benefits
At an event promoting school choice at the White House, Trump praised the Opportunity Scholarship Program for improving children's lives and for its high graduation rate.
Andrew Ujifusa, May 3, 2017
1 min read
School Choice & Charters New Studies of Federal Vouchers Can't Use 'Gold Standard' Research
In its bipartisan budget deal, Congress inserted language that will prohibit the use of the most-rigorous scientific research methods for new evaluations of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program.
Lesli A. Maxwell, May 3, 2017
1 min read
Education Charters, Vouchers, ESAs Add Heat to State Legislative Debates
At least 35 states this year have considered creating or expanding vouchers, Education Savings Accounts and charter schools as a way to save money and improve academic outcomes.
Daarel Burnette II, May 2, 2017
3 min read
Federal Could the Recent D.C. Voucher Report Hurt Trump's School Choice Pitch?
Critics of the federally funded voucher program quickly pounced on the study's findings to throw cold water on the Trump administration's push to expand private school voucher programs.
Alyson Klein, April 27, 2017
1 min read
School Choice & Charters D.C. Vouchers Show Negative Impact on Student Achievement, Study Finds
Critics of the federally funded voucher program quickly pounced on the study's findings to throw cold water on the Trump administration's push to expand private school voucher programs.
Lesli A. Maxwell, April 27, 2017
3 min read
School Choice & Charters Opinion Betsy DeVos, Listen to Us. We Might Surprise You.
Let's advocate for us to have choices. We are educators and we are professionals and we know children and we want our creative moment.
Jill Berkowicz & Ann Myers, April 25, 2017
6 min read
School Choice & Charters Arizona Victory Emboldens School Choice Supporters
The broadening of the state's education savings account program has some backers already looking to widen it further, even as teachers and some school groups decry the recent expansion.
Sarah Tully, April 18, 2017
4 min read
Judge Neil M. Gorsuch is sworn in as a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court by Justice Anthony M. Kennedy at the White House April 10, as Gorsuch’s wife, Louise, and President Donald Trump watch. Gorsuch joins the court in time to hear a case involving a Missouri church that is being closely watched by advocates on both sides of the school choice issue.
Judge Neil M. Gorsuch is sworn in as a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court by Justice Anthony M. Kennedy at the White House April 10, as Gorsuch’s wife, Louise, and President Donald Trump watch. Gorsuch joins the court in time to hear a case involving a Missouri church that is being closely watched by advocates on both sides of the school choice issue.
Evan Vucci/AP
Law & Courts School Choice Implications in Religious Rights Case at High Court
A dispute not directly related to education has the potential to weaken or eliminate one of the last legal barriers to vouchers for use at private religious schools.
Mark Walsh, April 17, 2017
7 min read
Federal Top Dem. Senators Ask for Federal Study of Tax-Credit School Choice Programs
Tax-credit scholarships could be one of several ways that President Donald Trump's administration and Congress could use to promote school choice from Washingto
Andrew Ujifusa, April 14, 2017
1 min read
School Choice & Charters Opinion The School Choice Debate
Marc Tucker surveys the domestic and international evidence regarding school choice, including charter schools, and what it means for building high-achieving, equitable school systems.
Marc Tucker, April 13, 2017
7 min read
School Choice & Charters Most States Are Pushing Private School Choice Bills, But Some Are Faltering
Bills to expand or create new public school choice options, including vouchers, have been introduced in 34 states, but some have failed despite the Trump administration's enthusiasm for expanding choice.
Sarah Tully, April 5, 2017
2 min read
Education Funding News in Brief Wis. Voucher Aid Higher Than Public School Funding
Taxpayer-funded payments to children choosing to attend private schools in Wisconsin using a voucher will increase an estimated $217 per student in each of the next two years—payments that will continue to exceed per-student state aid for public schools.
The Associated Press, April 4, 2017
1 min read
Federal Watch John King Talk Vouchers, Trump Budget in Facebook Live Interview
Education Week correspondent Kavitha Cardoza sat down with former U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr., who sharply criticized cuts to education programs proposed by President Donald Trump.
Andrew Ujifusa, March 22, 2017
1 min read
Cynthia Greaux, a Florida mother, uses vouchers to send her children Tyler, 14, and Chloe, 8, to a private school that specializes in educating students with dyslexia.
Cynthia Greaux, a Florida mother, uses vouchers to send her children Tyler, 14, and Chloe, 8, to a private school that specializes in educating students with dyslexia.
Angel Valentin for Education Week
School Choice & Charters Parents See Benefits in Spec. Ed. Vouchers, But No Silver Bullet
For students with disabilities, vouchers can help open the door to private school attendance, but they come with trade-offs, including the loss of specific legal protections.
Christina A. Samuels, March 21, 2017
10 min read