Steve Hinnefeld warns that Republican legislators in Indiana are laying the groundwork to expand the state’s failed voucher program. The research on vouchers in many states has been consistent: Students who use vouchers fall behind their peers in public schools. Those who continue to push vouchers are either ideologues, religious zealots, or paid to do so. We know that they don’t help students. Increasingly the students who take vouchers already attend religious schools or planned to, and they are getting public money to pay private tuition.
Indiana legislators like to fund failure.
Don’t be surprised if lawmakers try to expand Indiana’s already generous private school voucher program in 2021. They’re signaling their intention with the issues surveys they send to constituents.
At least eight House Republicans include this question in their surveys, which are posted on their internet sites: “Do you support increasing the income eligibility for Indiana’s CHOICE scholarships, giving more low- and middle-income families the option to send their children to the school that best meets their needs?”
Note that the question contains a falsehood. Increasing the income eligibility for vouchers, officially labeled Choice Scholarships, won’t change anything for low-income families. They already meet income qualifications for the program, which provides state funding for private school tuition.
Under current law, students can qualify for vouchers if their family income is less than 150% of the threshold for reduced-price school meals. They remain eligible if their family income rises to 200% of the reduced-meal level. For a family of five, that’s $113,516, two times Indiana’s median household income.
In other words, low-income families and many middle-income families already meet the income requirements. According to the 2019-20 Indiana Department of Education voucher report, a quarter of voucher recipients came from families that made over $75,000 and 7% made over $100,000.
The suggestion in the survey that vouchers let families choose schools that meet their children’s “needs” is also questionable. Surveys have found that many voucher parents choose private schools primarily because they provide religious training, not because their children have unique needs. Research has shown that voucher students who leave public schools for private schools typically fall behind academically.
For voucher advocates low achievement is not a failure, because neither improved learning nor equity is their goal. What they hope to achieve is privatization of a public entity, undermining a union stronghold, and opening an avenue for profit. All the rest is a ruse.
YEP!
And to also turn this country into an xtian caliphate.
“All the rest is a ruse.” Yes, yes and yes.
Unfortunately, when education is subject to political will, evidence and facts cease to become a consideration. Vouchers send students to worse performing schools while it also undermines the public schools that do a better job and serve the most students. It makes no sense. We will continue to make no sense as along as voters keep selecting religious zealots and profiteers to represent them.
I sent this article along with my comments to state Senator Niemeyer [R-IN] and state Representative Slager [R-IN]. Writing to them never makes any difference even though I always say that I’m a retired teacher.
Teachers in Indiana protested at the state capital in Indianapolis before COVID hit, complaining about the poor conditions for learning in the schools. That didn’t even dent the minds of these ‘self-proclaimed’ political experts in education.
Thank you for your email. I really appreciate you taking the time to reach out to my office.
Please know that I received your message, and it is very important to me. My office receives a large volume of emails, so I want to assure you that my staff and I always handle our district’s comments and questions thoughtfully.
If you need immediate assistance with a state agency or have specific questions regarding legislation, please do not hesitate to contact my Legislative Assistant, Matt LoPrete, by calling 317-232-9833.
Sincerely,
Hal Slager
State Representative
House District 15
……………………………………………..
Thank you for your message. I appreciate you taking the time to reach out to me. Due to the volume of emails I receive, I may not have an opportunity to personally respond to all messages. However, please know that I will read and consider all correspondence.
If you are writing regarding assistance on a constituent matter, either myself or a member of my staff will be in contact with you as soon as possible.
If you have questions pertaining to or need assistance with a COVID-19 related matter, you can go to www.indianasenaterepublicans.com/covid-19 for a list of resources that may be helpful. If you have a specific concern that these resources cannot address, please contact the Indiana COVID-19 toll free number, (877) 826-0011, for information and assistance.
It is a privilege to serve you in the State Senate, and I thank you for taking time to contact me.
Senator Rick Niemeyer
Indiana State Senate
Ted Cruz, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, and several other Republican senators just announced that they will not vote to certify the vote of the Electoral College until there is a full audit of the election results.
Remember when Trump said Ted Cruz’s father was involved in the assassination of JFK? Remember when he said Cruz’s wife looked like a dog compared to Melania?
He doesn’t hold grudges.
I suppose this means that they want to placate the Trump base of haters and QAnon and Proud Boys.
Diane: I just sent a ‘sweet’ letter to Senator Mike Braun [R-IN] telling him what I think of his latest attempt to put Trump back in office.
Braun is one of the 11 senators who will vote not to certify the Electoral College vote until there is an “audit” of contested states. Never mind that there were recounts in all the contested states.
There were two recounts in Georgia. Results unchanged.
I remember to the good old days growing up in Louisiana when the state vied with Mississippi and Arkansas for the label of stupidest state in the nation. Looks like many states are vying for the title now.
Trump Plans to Fight the Election Even After ‘Stop the Steal’ Rally Ends
The president has told advisers he isn’t deterred by the setbacks in the courts and won’t be deterred by Congress certifying Joe Biden’s win.
Many of Donald Trump’s most dogmatic supporters see a mass protest in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6—just two weeks shy of Inauguration Day 2021—as their last chance to disrupt President-elect Joe Biden’s win. But for the president himself, it’s just another day to complain.
Two people familiar with the matter say that in recent days, Trump has told advisers and close associates that he wants to keep fighting in court past Jan. 6 if members of Congress, as expected, end up certifying the electoral college results.
“The way he sees it is: Why should I ever let this go?… How would that benefit me?” said one of the sources, who’s spoken to Trump at length about the post-election activities to nullify his Democratic opponent’s decisive victory.
The president’s exact plans for the Jan. 6 events remain unclear, and it has been common for him to lend his support to these rallies or protests via enthusiastic-sounding tweets, only to then stop short of doing much else. Since last week, Trump has asked certain aides and allies what they think would be good ideas for him to mark the occasion, such as a speech, a flyover, or a recorded video, the sources said…
https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-plans-to-fight-the-election-even-after-stop-the-steal-rally-ends?source=email&via=desktop
Thanks for the link. Some seriously dangerous people plan on being there. Sad indeed!
And there is this from the article:
“MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, a Trump ally who has funded and spoken at several efforts to challenge the 2020 election, told The Daily Beast. “If these people [around the president] don’t end up standing up, they are just as bad as the people who tried to commit the crime.”
For Lindell, the push to overturn the election results is not just a matter of politics but of religion as well.
“God chose Donald Trump for eight years, not four,” he said. . . . ”
He’s got a direct line to his sky-daddy! I wonder why only eight years and not for all eternity??? Man, I could use some of what Lindell has been ingesting. I could use some good mind altering substances when I go floating later this month! Maybe instead of floating down the river on the water I could float above it! Cool beans, man!
“Those who continue to push vouchers are either idiologues*, religious zealots, or paid to do so.”
Minor but important correction!
*Idiologue (n.) Believer in idiologies**.
**Idiology (n.) Belief in falsehoods, superstitions, myths, and all varieties of absurdities. Belief system of idiots.