School Vouchers

9 Pages 2207 Words

ompanying issues. The purpose of this paper is to examine and analyze the school voucher program that was recently defeated in the election of 2000. Our slain king’s historic message should be taken to heart, because we are the only the ones that can help ourselves. School Vouchers; this issue has caused more controversy than in recent memory. First of all, what are school vouchers? Vouchers are government subsidized distributions of money--in this case $3,000--to eligible families, which can be used to attend either private of public schools. The amount was determined by calculating the average amount of money that is allocated to each child in the state of Michigan. They are a way of helping low income families give their children a better education by allotting them money in the form of this coupon. In doing this, the state has to provide vouchers for every child attending school not just children of low-income families. If passed by the voters, will funnel money away from public schools and be distributed to various individuals, which will be selected based on economic status as well as a number of other factors. Secondly, what issues do school vouchers bring to the political forefront? The distribution of public funds, meaning tax dollars, to only some individuals creates an argument. What are the criteria for receiving these funds? Who makes the decisions concerning disbursement and selection of recipients? Are the funds accounted for after they are distributed, or can the moneys be used for other purposes? As one can see by these questions, corruption can easily rear its ugly head during the selection and distribution. Also, being that these moneys can be used for enrollment in private schools, this bridges the gap between church and state. Public funding is not supposed to be given to privately funded establishments due to the long-standing separation of church and state in this country. Some argue that school vouchers are unc...