They actually listened and decided to drop the voucher plans entirely which feels completely surreal after everything. I am just so happy that our public schools are safe for now but we really need to keep our eyes open because they might try to sneak this back into the agenda …
March 22, 2016
Final supporters
Just call them vouchers.
Oklahoma lawmakers are poised to approve vouchers, also known as Education Savings Accounts, this legislative session. This is NOT OK. Vouchers aren't a solution for helping build a solid education foundation for Oklahoma's children. Oklahoma's policymakers must work with parents and education leaders at all levels for real solutions to support the 692,000 students in their public schools. There are no shortcuts. Lawmakers must say NO to vouchers!
Vouchers will DIVERT as much as $2 billion over the next 14 years from public schools to those who have always chosen private school or homeschool.
Vouchers LACK ACCOUNTABILITY for taxpayer dollars and student achievement.
Vouchers will REDIRECT limited resources from the true schools of choice -- the public schools that serve more than 90 percent of Oklahoma's school-age children.
Oklahoma has school CHOICE. Oklahoma has family-friendly transfer laws. More than 40,000 students transfer to a school in another district, while several thousand students transfer to a different school within their district. More than 80,000 high school students choose to participate in Career Tech classes.
A majority of parents OPPOSE using taxpayer dollars to pay for private school.
Vouchers are UNPROVEN as a means of consistently or significantly improving student achievement for all students.
Over 14 years, vouchers would shift as much $2 billion from public schools to pay for students who will have never attended public schools.
- Do taxpayers really want to subsidize private schools? If vouchers are approved this year, every student starting pre-k this fall could attend 13 years of private school at taxpayer expense.
- By 2029, every private school student would be eligible for a voucher without ever attending a public school.
- The cost could be much higher. The cost estimate assumes private school enrollment remains at the same level as 2012,* that the number of students in homeschool remains level and that the socioeconomic makeup of students in private and home schools mirrors that of today’s public school students. (*Source: National Center for Education Statistics).
In the name of accountability, state leaders have piled on a growing amount of mandates and paperwork on public schools. Vouchers lack transparency in how taxpayer money is spent and for how students are performing.
- As proposed, parents would receive a debit card that could be used to pay for private school. It also could be used for online curriculum, extracurricular activities including sports, renting computers, field trips and tutoring.
- Every dollar of money to public schools is coded and tracked, and strict limits are placed on how much schools can spend money for administration and other areas. Private schools would not be limited in how they spend voucher money or be required to account for expenses.
- Public schools must give state-mandated tests, adhere to state-adopted academic standards and face sanctions if students aren’t performing well. The proposed vouchers allow recipients to largely avoid any student achievement-related reporting and mandates.
Oklahoma families have made their choice. More than 90 percent of Oklahoma families picked public schools, and enrollment is growing! Lawmakers should focus on helping students where they are -- public schools.
- Want school choice? We have it! More than 40,000 students transfer to another school district every year, thousands more students transfer to different schools within their districts and more than 80,000 of the state’s high school students choose classes available through the state’s career technology system.
- Last year, Oklahoma lawmakers approved the statewide expansion of charter schools.
- Vulnerable students face a variety of challenges when it comes to education. The best way to meet the needs of Oklahoma’s most needy students is to ensure their public school is filled with great leaders, great teachers, plentiful resources and support to meet their daily challenges.
Updates
Reached 2,500 supporters
February 15, 2016
February 13, 2016
I just looked at the counter and realized we are almost at twenty-five hundred signers which is wild because I remember when it was just me and my coffee sitting here worrying about the future of our classrooms. If everyone reading this shoots our link over to a few folks in their contacts we could hit that goal before the day is out and really show these people that we are not going to let our public schools get gutted without a fight.
March 11, 2015
I just refreshed the page and saw we actually hit one thousand signatures which is just honestly wild considering how this started in my living room with a lukewarm cup of coffee and a lot of frustration. It is so weird to think that many people looked at this and felt that same spark of anger about the money leaving our public classrooms because I truly thought I was just shouting into the void here.
Reached 1,000 supporters
March 9, 2015
Reached 100 supporters
March 5, 2015
876 Comments
Companies are looking for a good public school system before they even think about relocating to Oklahoma. This voucher bill will be a critical blow to the students of this state. I am in hopes you stand with our students and vote no on this bill. Thank you
Public schools accept everyone and must provide for their educational needs. Private schools can choose which students they will accept. Vouchers are a form of segregation and should not be allowed. Using the state's funding for private citizen use is wrong.
As a future educator, I do not support the voucher system for various reasons, the chief of which is that it takes money from the public school systems. It strips financial support from schools that are generally already lacking in this aspect.
This bill will drain our public education system of much-nended funds. Public money should not be used to support unregulated private schools, most of which teach a religious curriculum. So 609 is bad for public schools. It's bad for Oklahoma.
Vouchers suck public money away from public schos and do not provide enough money to fund an average student attending a private school. This is just a giveaway to wealthy families who can ready afford to send their kids to private schools.
Recall or remove Ryan walters NOW
Happily, Oklahoma already has private-school vouchers. Today roughly 100,000 Oklahoma students are eligible for a private-school voucher. Right now these vouchers are helping bullied children who contemplated suicide, autistic students, deaf and hearing-impaired children, teenage students battling addiction, rural students who want a faith-based education, and many more. In 2017 Oklahoma again said yes to vouchers, expanding eligibility for the program to include children in foster care and children adopted out of state custody. It passed the state House 87-0 and the state Senate 43-0. An ESA is a different policy mechanism altogether, but hopefully Oklahoma lawmakers will enact an ESA program soon.
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They actually listened and decided to drop the voucher plans entirely which feels completely surreal after everything. I am just so happy that our public schools are safe for now but we really need to keep our eyes open because they might try to sneak this back into the agenda …
March 22, 2016
Final supporters
Just call them vouchers.
Oklahoma lawmakers are poised to approve vouchers, also known as Education Savings Accounts, this legislative session. This is NOT OK. Vouchers aren't a solution for helping build a solid education foundation for Oklahoma's children. Oklahoma's policymakers must work with parents and education leaders at all levels for real solutions to support the 692,000 students in their public schools. There are no shortcuts. Lawmakers must say NO to vouchers!
Vouchers will DIVERT as much as $2 billion over the next 14 years from public schools to those who have always chosen private school or homeschool.
Vouchers LACK ACCOUNTABILITY for taxpayer dollars and student achievement.
Vouchers will REDIRECT limited resources from the true schools of choice -- the public schools that serve more than 90 percent of Oklahoma's school-age children.
Oklahoma has school CHOICE. Oklahoma has family-friendly transfer laws. More than 40,000 students transfer to a school in another district, while several thousand students transfer to a different school within their district. More than 80,000 high school students choose to participate in Career Tech classes.
A majority of parents OPPOSE using taxpayer dollars to pay for private school.
Vouchers are UNPROVEN as a means of consistently or significantly improving student achievement for all students.
Over 14 years, vouchers would shift as much $2 billion from public schools to pay for students who will have never attended public schools.
- Do taxpayers really want to subsidize private schools? If vouchers are approved this year, every student starting pre-k this fall could attend 13 years of private school at taxpayer expense.
- By 2029, every private school student would be eligible for a voucher without ever attending a public school.
- The cost could be much higher. The cost estimate assumes private school enrollment remains at the same level as 2012,* that the number of students in homeschool remains level and that the socioeconomic makeup of students in private and home schools mirrors that of today’s public school students. (*Source: National Center for Education Statistics).
In the name of accountability, state leaders have piled on a growing amount of mandates and paperwork on public schools. Vouchers lack transparency in how taxpayer money is spent and for how students are performing.
- As proposed, parents would receive a debit card that could be used to pay for private school. It also could be used for online curriculum, extracurricular activities including sports, renting computers, field trips and tutoring.
- Every dollar of money to public schools is coded and tracked, and strict limits are placed on how much schools can spend money for administration and other areas. Private schools would not be limited in how they spend voucher money or be required to account for expenses.
- Public schools must give state-mandated tests, adhere to state-adopted academic standards and face sanctions if students aren’t performing well. The proposed vouchers allow recipients to largely avoid any student achievement-related reporting and mandates.
Oklahoma families have made their choice. More than 90 percent of Oklahoma families picked public schools, and enrollment is growing! Lawmakers should focus on helping students where they are -- public schools.
- Want school choice? We have it! More than 40,000 students transfer to another school district every year, thousands more students transfer to different schools within their districts and more than 80,000 of the state’s high school students choose classes available through the state’s career technology system.
- Last year, Oklahoma lawmakers approved the statewide expansion of charter schools.
- Vulnerable students face a variety of challenges when it comes to education. The best way to meet the needs of Oklahoma’s most needy students is to ensure their public school is filled with great leaders, great teachers, plentiful resources and support to meet their daily challenges.
Updates
Reached 2,500 supporters
February 15, 2016
February 13, 2016
I just looked at the counter and realized we are almost at twenty-five hundred signers which is wild because I remember when it was just me and my coffee sitting here worrying about the future of our classrooms. If everyone reading this shoots our link over to a few folks in their contacts we could hit that goal before the day is out and really show these people that we are not going to let our public schools get gutted without a fight.
March 11, 2015
I just refreshed the page and saw we actually hit one thousand signatures which is just honestly wild considering how this started in my living room with a lukewarm cup of coffee and a lot of frustration. It is so weird to think that many people looked at this and felt that same spark of anger about the money leaving our public classrooms because I truly thought I was just shouting into the void here.
Reached 1,000 supporters
March 9, 2015
Reached 100 supporters
March 5, 2015
876 Comments
As a retired teacher, mother of two Zoklahoma teachers, and grNdpRent of five children, I strongly support a well funded public education system, as mandated by our constitution! We must not take dollars away! Every child needs an education!
Companies are looking for a good public school system before they even think about relocating to Oklahoma. This voucher bill will be a critical blow to the students of this state. I am in hopes you stand with our students and vote no on this bill. Thank you
Public schools accept everyone and must provide for their educational needs. Private schools can choose which students they will accept. Vouchers are a form of segregation and should not be allowed. Using the state's funding for private citizen use is wrong.
As a future educator, I do not support the voucher system for various reasons, the chief of which is that it takes money from the public school systems. It strips financial support from schools that are generally already lacking in this aspect.
This bill will drain our public education system of much-nended funds. Public money should not be used to support unregulated private schools, most of which teach a religious curriculum. So 609 is bad for public schools. It's bad for Oklahoma.
Vouchers suck public money away from public schos and do not provide enough money to fund an average student attending a private school. This is just a giveaway to wealthy families who can ready afford to send their kids to private schools.
Recall or remove Ryan walters NOW
Happily, Oklahoma already has private-school vouchers. Today roughly 100,000 Oklahoma students are eligible for a private-school voucher. Right now these vouchers are helping bullied children who contemplated suicide, autistic students, deaf and hearing-impaired children, teenage students battling addiction, rural students who want a faith-based education, and many more. In 2017 Oklahoma again said yes to vouchers, expanding eligibility for the program to include children in foster care and children adopted out of state custody. It passed the state House 87-0 and the state Senate 43-0. An ESA is a different policy mechanism altogether, but hopefully Oklahoma lawmakers will enact an ESA program soon.
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As a retired teacher, mother of two Zoklahoma teachers, and grNdpRent of five children, I strongly support a well funded public education system, as mandated by our constitution! We must not take dollars away! Every child needs an education!