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Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2006 > January > 23 > Entry
Hope, then dispair
Dayton superintendent Percy Mack and school board President Gail Littlejohn probably would have found Monday night’s informational meeting for parents interested in vouchers pretty depressing.
Nearly 100 anxious parents clamored for news that there might be cash avaialable to help them escape Dayton Public Schools. And several of them were crushed to learn the voucher rules are so restrictive that only a very few are likely to get any help.
Four years after Mack, Littlejohn and the school board began a massive overhaul of the district’s academic programs, management systems and financial processes, they are always quick to point to progress on test scores, solid financial figures or newly-hired quality administrators. But despite these little victories along the way there could be no arguing that the perception of parents who came in search of vouchers was that the district is not the place for families who value education.
The number of parents who went home unhappy also calls into question the rationale behind the voucher rules. The idea was to get help first to the kids in the most desperate need. Lawmakers defined that as kids forced by school boundaries to attend a school that has been in “academic emergency” for three consecutive years.
That makes sense some places, but in Dayton many parents felt the rules were a bad fit.
Dayton has no school boundaries. It is a district of total choice. Each parent selects their child’s school through a lottery. They rank their first, second and third choice schools. The vast majority get their first choice and only a tiny few have to settle for their third picks.
So this is where the state’s logic falls apart. In theory, any parent in the city could request transfer to any other school. Plus, in Dayton, there are 33 charter school options for them to choose.
So for Dayton, the state had to sort of wing in when applying the rules. They decided voucher would only go to kids who right now are attending Dayton public schools that were rated in academic emergency the last three years.
Interestingly, in Dayton they ruled charter schools out of the equation, even though there are four Dayton charters with three years in academic emergency. In other cities, charter kids who would have been assigned based on their address to a low scoring district school can get the voucher.
The rationale appears to be that charter students have already chosen their schools and could always change schools if displeased. But in Dayton, that is true of just about every student. Anyone can request any school or choose any charter school.
But only those select 2,000 or so kids at seven schools can get the golden ticket — a voucher to attend private school.
Most parents who attended Monday’s meeting thought the rules were unfair. What do you think?
Permalink | Comments (3) | Categories: Charter Schools and School Choice
Comments
By Craig
January 27, 2006 1:11 PM | Link to this
I understand but disagree with the restrictive nature of the policy. If not for it, there would be a mass exodus of kids heading for private schools. If the schools to pick from are underperforming and a parent has already taken the initiative to send their child(ren) to private school already, then they should be eligible for vouchers as well - which is not the case. One year in a failing system can have a lasting effect on a child. Which child deserves that? If funds are limited, then I understand a needs-based allocation system.By Mary
January 24, 2006 3:28 PM | Link to this
Give them all vouchers. Putting a student’s education and family on hold while the education system heals is like having them wait with a ruptured appendix while the med student finishes med school and the hospital is built. Their education is now - not 20 years from now.By Rick
January 24, 2006 1:12 PM | Link to this
Seems fair to me. If a student has an option to go to a school that is not in academic emergency, then the purpose of the statute has been met. If they want to get vouchers, request that their student be assigned to on of those bad school; after a year they are eligible to apply.