This summer it became evident that Ohio's EdChoice Scholarship (a statewide voucher program for students in low-performing schools) would reach its cap and students would be waitlisted. Currently the EdChoice voucher program has a 14,000 student cap, which has never been reached until this year.?? In 2010 14,708 students applied for the EdChoice voucher program.? After sorting out ineligible students and those who failed to complete their paperwork correctly, there were over 300 children left on the waitlist.? The idea that hundreds of children are currently trapped in Ohio's lowest performing schools with no way out is already a compelling enough reason to lift the cap and expand the program.
But new data round out the picture and make it all the more urgent that Ohio expand the EdChoice scholarship. Earlier this week the Ohio Department of Education released an updated list of public schools whose students are eligible for the EdChoice voucher program in the 2011-2012 school year.? The list consists of 202 schools that have been in Academic Watch or Academic Emergency for two of the past three years.? School Choice Ohio pointed out yesterday that these 202 schools translate to over 85,000 students who are eligible to apply for the voucher.? That is about 71,000 students too many.?? The application process for the 2011-2012 school year begins in February, and it is likely that once again there will be a waitlist and some students will not be awarded a voucher.
For some students vouchers are the only way to escape chronically underperforming schools.?? Every child in Ohio deserves the chance to attend a quality school where they can receive the best education possible, but as this data show, some 85,000 students currently are being denied the chance to get it.
As Peter states, ?Why is choice such a hard concept to sell ? in America, of all places??? The choice of quality education for all students should not be a hard choice to make.
- Bianca Speranza