Important in the current election season where public education is clearly on the ballot is the reminder that privatization of public schools is a policy decision made by legislators to shift public education to the private sector.
Legislators have spent over $1.6 billion on private education primarily by using private school vouchers that route public taxpayer dollars to private, mostly religious institutions. “School choice” has been used as a political tool to justify using our tax dollars to fund private education that lacks transparency and academic accountability, bypasses federal civil rights protections, and increases socioeconomic and racial segregation.
School vouchers are a Trojan horse. They are marketed as “school choice” giving parents the ability to select their child’s educational environment but in reality private schools are allowed to “choose” who they will admit, how they will educate students, how much they will charge for tuition and fees, and when to dismiss students with no state oversight.
In contrast, NC public schools offer universal open-door access and inclusive programs with an unconditional commitment to educate every child who enters their school doors. While private schools can and do reject students based on their religion, their special needs, ability or financial means, public schools are obligated to educate every student. Public schools have an unmatched array of excellent choices ranging from early-college, international baccalaureate, dual language/immersion, STEM/STEAM, arts, career tech, leadership, world studies, gifted/talented programs, and a wide variety of athletic programs and other extracurricular choices such as student council, FFA, and debate.
You can learn more about the impact of privatization on our website along with these good resources: Who Pays for Choice?, School Choice Does Not Provide Better Education, and Privatizing Public School Funds: Threats to Equity, Access, and Educational Quality.