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June 10, 1998
For more information, contact
Barb Brady, WEAC Press Secretary
800-362-8034, extension 239
Today’s ruling on the Milwaukee school voucher program opens the door to a new form of separate and unequal education, according to the executive director of the Wisconsin Education Association Council.
“It’s a sad day for the children of Milwaukee and Wisconsin, ” WEAC Executive Director Don Krahn said. “The decision will allow creation of a system of unequal educational opportunities for children. We fought racial segregation of schools 40 years ago because separate education systems led to privilege for one class at the expense of others.”
Although the court claimed the amended voucher program was not an abandonment of public schools, Krahn said the decision will be devastating to Milwaukee Public Schools.
“Because of revenue controls, MPS will be forced to make drastic cuts in its educational programs,” Krahn said. “The current state school financing system already punishes MPS for having a disproportionate share of children from low income backgrounds. Given the substantial program cuts that will now be mandated, it appears that the voucher program will harm the very students its proponents claim they want to help. The only winners in this case are the religious schools and those wishing sectarian education, since religious schools will now be permitted to collect more from the state than they charge for tuition.”
Expanding the voucher program to religious schools is not the way to improve education, according to Krahn. “It’s a sleight of hand trick that pits the popular appeal of individual choice against the reality of state revenue controls and diverted public funds which are rapidly strangling the quality of our public schools.”
Krahn said the real loser is the notion of a just and democratic society creating a common education system where all children grow up prepared for life and jobs.
“Voucher proponents see an opportunity for publicly financed exclusivity,” he said. “The question now will be how well society meets the needs of children who remain in public schools.”
Krahn said it was disappointing that the Wisconsin Supreme Court has chosen to become the first court in the nation to authorize direct state aid to religious schools to promote religious education in the context of a general education program. “The Constitution clearly bans the use of public funds for religious purposes,” Krahn said
