xCTL > The proposal for vouchers would give those taxpayers paying $7000 in local property taxes $25,000 a year in local tax dollars to spend outside the public education system. I object to this
> I do not trust the honesty and ability of private operators spending public education tax dollars
I agree with you that there should be oversight – as of any public money spent. I did not see – maybe I missed? – your response to my argument that this country spends a lot of public funds via private means. Are you insisting that only public servants produce Patriot missiles? that public servants decide what welfare recipients should eat – specific menu, that is. So, when you live in AOC district, you’ll get veggie diet, in JD Vances’, red meat. Surely, this does not affect anyone’s freedom – you can always move to the place that serves meat, same way people now need to move to get to better public schools.
As to specifics, a lot of your concerns can be either alleviated or, at least, tested out: testing 3Rs is a simple thing that many states already do. You don’t need to give $25K vouchers (the insane amount public school spends). Start with $10K, see how many takers will be there, then give more to the schools that give best results. As a result, your struggling public schools will have (temporarily, hopefully) more money per person to spend while they are adjusting to having competition. There are other things you can do – allow online classes where appropriate (high schoolers who can handle it; extra classes not available in small schools); allow easier competition between public schools. If people like you with experience in both public and private ed themselves will approach this problem with all creativity you have, instead of dogmatism, things will start improving – for those poor people especially.