Choice Meeting

Some of you may have received something like this in the mail this week. I believe this is the second meeting they have had in the last few months.

You may be wondering why I would have something like this on a site devoted to communicating news about the Rock Hill Schools. Well....it follows with my philosophy that everyone should make up their own mind. Hopefully, we are teaching questioning and research methods in school and you have learned them as well.

I have questioned their (SC Voucher) methods in the past because they attack and distort public school performance instead of promoting their own. But there is a segment of our student population that is not achieving in public schools - if private schools can correct that - we should pursue with great speed. However, those are the students who are least likely to benefit from proposals put forth by the voucher folks.

Questions I have:

• What is the role of government? If parents can collect tax dollars because they don't want their children to go to a public school, why not those tax payers who have no children in school? Why shouldn't I get a refund on my tax dollars that were spent on the Cooper River bridge - since I've never been over it?
  
• Public schools have an accountability system in place. The PACT/PASS tests have been identified as one of the toughest in the nation. Why should we expect less of our tax dollars going somewhere else.
• As a group, students who live in poverty fail in our public schools at about a 50% rate. To improve education in South Carolina - this is the group that will change everything. How will vouchers help this group? (I will not repeat one of their explanations for this - but if you believe it - I've got some swamp land in Florida for you)