Voucher pushers want you to believe that diverting state funds to private schools will create choices for children who don’t currently have them. The data tell us otherwise.
In state after state that has implemented voucher programs, the result has been the same: overwhelmingly, vouchers have gone to parents who already were sending their children to private schools and who already had the means to pay the tuition. That isn’t an accident.
Here’s how private schools routinely limit the “choice” that privatizers promise in their deceptive propaganda:
- denying admission – private schools pick and choose the children they want to serve, unlike public schools that are open to all
- raising tuition – private schools often raise tuition well beyond what vouchers will cover, knowing that parents of the children already enrolled can afford to pay it
- no transportation – the denial of transportation services for students automatically eliminates “choice” for children with less privilege
- refusal of services – most private schools do not provide services many children, including those with disabilities, need to succeed
In fact, Mississippi’s private school association has made clear that they strongly prefer that the state bankroll them through tuition tax credits rather than through voucher payments. Not only do tax credits allow private schools to avoid any public scrutiny for the quality of education they provide or how their funds are spent, they also relieve private schools of any pressure to admit new voucher recipients. And, tax credits themselves limit choice because they benefit those who already are paying tuition.
This shouldn’t be surprising. The entire voucher scheme was designed to benefit private schools. Not students, not parents, not taxpayers – and certainly not the public good. The lie of “school choice” is among the latest iterations of privatizers’ messaging, which has evolved over three decades as they failed to convince legislators to abandon public schools. More on that – and the influence of dark money in recent years – is coming soon. Stay tuned! In the meantime, please share this information with other public schools supporters you know. We’ve got a big fight coming in 2025 as privatizers zero in on Mississippi.
As our students and their rockstar teachers head back to the classroom, we wish them a safe, fulfilling, and productive year, and we thank them for working hard to make Mississippi a better place to live, work, and play. We at The Parents’ Campaign – and many thousands of you across our great state – will be working hard to ensure they have the resources and support they need to be successful. Together, we’ve got this!
