The Florida Education Association, state school boards, and the Florida PTA have filed a lawsuit in a Florida court challenging the state’s Tax Credit Scholarship Program (for the second time this summer). The suit argues that the program violates clauses in the state constitution that require educational uniformity and bar state aid to religious organization. There are multiple problems here. First, the plaintiffs should be ashamed that they’re advancing a narrow agenda by jeopardizing the program's 69,000 participants—largely poor and minority students seeking a better education. Second, the U.S. Constitution permits tax credits for donations to religious organizations; if this challenge goes all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, Blaine Amendments might be in trouble. The big question is the uniformity clause, which mandates a single, uniform state education system. Hopefully, the Florida Supreme Court interprets the state constitution in a way that doesn’t harm tens of thousands of disadvantaged youngsters.
On Sunday, The New York Times’s Motoko Rich penned a news analysis asking why more men don’t go into teaching. A good question; but she gave a suspect answer. She blamed, among other things, low teacher pay. Inexplicably, she cited perhaps the lowest figure one can find—claiming that the median annual salary for elementary school teachers in the U.S. is a paltry (and hard-to-believe) $40,000. The Gadfly objects! More reliable NCES data show the average salary (not the median) is a much more palatable $56,384. Let’s not make teaching appear less appealing than it actually is.
Ohio has just weathered three weeks of legislative committee hearings over a bill to repeal the Common Core. Nowhere have we seen a larger and more diverse group of unlikely allies coming out in support of the standards. School districts of all sizes and types—as well as charter schools—argued against the multiyear chaos proposed in the bill; Chris Minnich of the Council of Chief State School Officers patiently answered “how’d you do that?” questions; parents, community service groups, and teachers spoke in person or submitted written pleas to stop the politicization of education; philanthropy and social-justice groups argued the need to maintain high standards for all Ohio students; and employers warned that “the real fear should be that our kids won't be able to compete.” Yes, an unlikely group, but perhaps just the right mix because repeal in Ohio appears less likely than when this circus began.
Last night, pro–pension reform State Treasurer Gina Raimondo won Rhode Island’s Democratic gubernatorial primary. And pro–charter schools Cumberland mayor Dan McKee won the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor. Both without any union endorsements. All this in a deep blue state!
