As the Flagler County school district is forced by a new state law to advocate for school choice–including vouchers, homeschooling and virtual schooling–against its own interests, the district is also learning to make the salesmanship work for itself: if there is to be true choice, the district must be included in the mix, and the message the district is disseminating is that it is “the best choice.”
school choice
The “School Choice” Swindle Is Demolishing Public Schools
“School choice” is an orchestrated demolition of public schools and the social contract. The focus-group euphemism masks the thieving of tax dollars to subsidize private schools, transforming what was once an aspiration of fringe Christian and anti-government militants into state doctrine. Flagler County schools are losing close to $11 million this year to “choice.”
Florida Senate Proposal Would Vastly Expand “School Choice” and Use of Tax Dollars for Private Schools
The legislation, filed by Republican Sen. Manny Diaz of Hialeah, would expand eligibility for school-voucher programs, consolidate existing school-choice programs and allow parents to use taxpayer-backed education savings accounts for private schools and other costs.
Florida Senate Creates New Program Using Public Money To Fund Private School Tuition
Florida senators on Thursday passed legislation that would allow more students to use taxpayer-funded scholarships to pay for private-school tuition, a major step toward expanding school choice in the state.
Both Sides Pressuring Scott on School Bill That Drew Protest Firestorm from Education Leaders
The bill’s passage infuriated school boards, superintendents, the state’s main teachers and other education advocates. Scott hinted that he was considering a veto at the time.
Why Are Flagler Schools Talking Rezoning Despite 2,000 Empty Seats? One Word: Choice
Old Kings and Belle Terre elementaries are overcapacity because they’ve allowed too many out-of-zone students to enroll. Some Board members want limits on such “choice” enrollments before rezoning takes place.
Zone-Busting School Bill That Allows Student Transfers Anywhere in the State Is Now Law
The measure would allow parents to transfer their children to any public school in the state that isn’t at capacity through an “open enrollment” process, among many other provisions in the 160-page bill.
School Choice Bill That Vastly Increases Parental Control–And Undermines Educators’–Advances
The measure gives parents the right to have their children attend any school in the state that hasn’t reached capacity and remove their child from one class to another under certain circumstances.
Tony Bennett, Friend of School Vouchers, Foe of Unions, is Florida’s New Education Chief
Before losing a reelection bid as Indiana’s superintendent of public instruction, Tony Bennett was boasting of introducing a voucher program and limiting collective bargaining to pay and benefits. Bennett also favors national common core standards, which are coming to Florida.
Soaring Corporate Tax Credit Voucher Program Costing Flagler Schools Half a Million Dollars
A new law passed by the Legislature last year increased the amount of taxpayer dollars available for private-school vouchers, from $118 million to $140 million-money denied the public school system. Some 33,000 students, including 86 in Flagler, are enrolled.
Charter, Voucher Advocate Gerard Robinson Is Florida’s New Education Commissioner
Robinson, a Jeb Bush protege, was Virginia’s secretary of education and president of the Black Alliance for Educational Options, a pro-school choice group ideologically aligned with Republican reforms.
How School-Voucher Lobbyist John Kirtley Buys Florida Lawmakers’ Votes
John Kirtley successfully lobbied in 2001 to get the corporate tax credit scholarship program approved, and has since, with generous contributions, shifted numerous lawmakers to his crusade.