Parents have a choice in education

               Gazing backwards upon history reveals many critical choices which left ongoing determining influences upon public life.  In the legislative sphere, the passage of many laws marked significant trajectory changes in the nature of society.  Civil rights legislation, the passage of Medicare, or social security in past decades all marked moments when public life changed from one way of life to another.  This year, parents in Tennessee stand at such a fork in the road in regard to the education of children in our state as our Governor proposes something he calls Education Freedom. A choice must be made by our state in regard to whether or not we want to pay the necessary price for this so-called freedom.  As parents whose children’s lives will be greatly influenced by this legislative decision, we should think carefully about this decision and speak up with a clear, unified voice in influencing the future trajectory of our children’s education.  If we do not stand up for our children, legislators and lobbyists will be left in charge of shaping our children’s future.

               No one can honestly argue that Tennessee excels in educating its next generation.  Too many statistics reveal dismal numbers on various statistics.  Recent reports indicate for the entire state the percent of students achieving a grade appropriate score on standardized testing is less than half the students. (for other evaluations of Tennessee schools look at self reported “report cards”). Other random news reports document the outcomes of bullying in our schools which result in anything from increased diagnoses of mental illness to suicides. If that were not enough, nighttime news reports offer the peppering of school employees having illicit relationships and “contact” with students.  Meanwhile parents have to fight the constant attempt to force Critical Race Theory and failed Common Core methods upon vulnerable children. Our public education system in Tennessee clearly has a rottenness that is afflicting our next generation.

               Parents and the public express dismay about these statistics and reports, but none of us can address this issue alone.  The current options besides their local public school for parents have for their own children are to either homeschool, pay for private school, or move to a different school district.  While many can argue that these are not all viable options for all parents, they are still options that most parents can choose even if it means some sacrifice for the sake of their children.  These options are available thanks to legal freedoms that the current government recognizes and our society supports in general.  When addressing the wider picture of educating Tennessee’s children as a whole, parents must speak together so that these options are not taken away in the process.  Tennessee must keep these present options while effectively addressing the dismal status of our current system for all involved. 

               This brings us to the choice before parents today, a choice which our Governor Lee has proposed though not written out for the public to evaluate (as of January 18th, the bill’s proposed wording is still not available to the public).  Currently, the policy form of school choice, in which the state supplies a set amount of monetary funding for a child to attend a private school rather than their designated public school, is now active in 3 Tennessee counties.  The Governor proposes that this smaller pilot program for 3 counties should be expanded to the entire state for at least 20,000 students but eventually for as many as want it.  Superficially, it would seem cruel and uncompassionate to argue against such an appealing and seemingly noble proposal that all children should be able to attend the best schools their parents can choose for them. 

               When such a momentous opportunity is presented for anyone to shape the course of the future for so many children and thus our future society, such a superficial and reflexively quick acceptance of such a presently vague proposal is however unwise.  Anyone paying attention to the past few years should know that the good intentions of government do not always produce what they promise or what we want.  Anyone who has watched the course of any public policy implementation knows that there are secondary consequences for any major policy decision.  Anyone who has progressed beyond elementary common core math knows that such government programs cost money, lots of it, and practically always more than what was initially stated.  With all of this and our children’s education in mind, Tennessee parents must pause and be sure we are choosing the right fork in the policy road before we are stuck going downhill without any brakes.

               Participating wisely in this decision-making process for our children’s future requires an open-eyed evaluation of our current limited school choice program in the 3 counties where it operates as well as considering the unofficial proposals we have heard from our Governor and other lawmakers.  We cannot yet evaluate the actual bill since it exists only in the clutches of our leaders hidden in the dark backrooms of the capitol where no parent can presently read it for its actual details.  For the currently operating program we can consider what outcomes it has produced in the years since passage in 2019, the statistics publicly available for its participants, the money trail that flows through it, and the rules that govern it.  For the future proposal still waiting to be formally released, we can consider the proposed numbers for the program, the possible strings that may be attached to the program recipients, the money trail proposed for this larger program, and the perspectives or hints from various lawmakers who have spoken to the media on this choice. 

Return Monday for part 2 addressing the status of the current Tennessee School Choice program.

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