John,

Republicans across the country are busily dismantling the public schools, mainly by diverting public school funds into private schools through vouchers and similar means. This process sends public money to schools that are selective, expensive, and unaccountable to the public.

Private schools, even if partially funded by public school vouchers, are not required to respect the same rights as public schools. Private schools can select only the students they wish to take; they are allowed to discriminate on the basis of a child’s disability or learning differences, or on the basis of race, religion, or socioeconomic status.

Private, voucher-funded schools are permitted to teach religious beliefs as facts, including creationism, fetal personhood, and intolerance of other beliefs. They are not required to teach the scientific method in science classes or any diverse perspectives on history.

Erasing the separation between church and state, using public funding for religious schooling violates the principles of the First Amendment.

Tell your lawmakers: Protect public education and ensure that public funds support a system that serves every child, regardless of their background or circumstances.

In Georgia, the recent passage of S.B. 233 grants families up to $6,500 per year to use public school funds for private school vouchers. This will shift massive resources away from public education, which (as any teacher can tell you) are already strapped in the first place.

South Carolina Republicans are hatching a plan to take $90 million away from public schools and placing it in an “educational scholarship trust fund,” to be used for private school vouchers. The new legislation would remove income caps, giving more money to rich families who would be sending their children to private school anyway.  

In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott is putting tens of millions of dollars into local campaigns to defeat fellow Republicans who oppose vouchers. Abbott’s plans are opposed by Democrats and by rural Republicans who depend on public schools in more isolated areas that would not be profitable for private schools to serve.

Claiming to offer greater “parental choice,” these programs actually drain resources from public schools while filling the coffers of private schools with narrow agendas.

With vouchers, private schools can increase their tuitions and still cost more than low-income families can afford. As a result, the education system becomes two-tiered and unequal, with elite, exclusive schools funded with public monies, and public schools that lack basic funding for maintaining (to say nothing of improving) the schools’ infrastructure or paying for quality teachers.

Tell your lawmakers: Stop diverting school funds away from children and communities who most need them. Support the full funding of public schools now!

Thank you for helping fight for public schools that are accessible and responsive to their communities.

- DFA AF Team