By Tim Ashley
InkFreeNews

SYRACUSE — Proposed state legislation that would establish education savings accounts and expand the school voucher program now apparently will not be moved out of committee consideration, said State Sen. Ryan Mishler.

House Bill 1005 was passed in the Indiana House and had been awaiting consideration in the Senate.

Ryan Mishler

Mishler said three key components of the original bill likely causing the most concern — education savings accounts, charter school grants and vouchers — will probably be vetted into Senate Bills 412 and 413. “We are trying to decide what we want to do,” he said. “Frankly, I have some concerns myself.”

The legislation makes up a significant part of the budget, he said, and more time is needed to research the issues because they are complicated. Mishler also said the school voucher program would not be increased as much as originally proposed. Instead of more than $100 million, it would only be increased by $30 million.

Although the legislation was designed to expand the voucher program, those opposed to the legislation locally say it would not provide more choices for schooling. There are no private or parochial schools in the immediate local area and the closest ones are located in Warsaw or Goshen.

Dr. Steve Troyer, superintendent of the Wawasee Community School Corporation, said the eligibility of those who would qualify for a voucher is set to increase approximately three times that of those who qualify to receive free or reduced-price meals. “In other words, a family of five earning over $170,000 annually could qualify to receive a voucher to a private school,” he said. “That is double what the median income is in the state of Indiana for a family that size.”

Mariah Roberts, agriculture teacher and FFA advisor at Wawasee High School, said of the nearly 3,000 students in the geographical area of the Wawasee school district, less than 1% of them actually use vouchers or choice scholarships. “The program is not working for rural communities like Wawasee,” she said.

Roberts added the state is either pulling the money away from rural public schools or charging the taxpayers “way too much.” She provided data showing Indiana has had the largest voucher system in the U.S. since 2011, but in rural areas, no private schools have come to give students more choices.

For those living in the Wawasee school district, it is at least a 20-minute drive, or even longer, to a private school.

Lissa Krull lives west of Milford and is a parent of kids who attend school in the Wawasee corporation and said she is all for having a choice, “but we couldn’t do it (private or homeschooling).”

“Public school is my only choice for my family,” she said. “There is not a choice in my area.”

She also noted public school funding would be capped at a growth rate of no more than 2%, but “private schools are getting 25% or more.”

Krull said choice is not her biggest concern, though. She is more concerned about the lack of accountability private schools have. “They are not under the same scrutiny as public schools are,” she said.

Troyer also noted the lack of accountability and said there are concerns about the establishment of education savings accounts. “These will allow families to use state education dollars to support private school tuition, including home-school programs, which offer virtually no accountability to taxpayers,” he said.

He said public schools face more scrutiny academically, financially and in other ways than private schools do. “Additionally, many of these programs deny or prohibit enrollment based upon factors that could be discriminatory in nature (disability, for example, or disciplinary problems, etc.),” he said.

The argument is also made public funds should only be used “to fund public schools, which are open to all children,” said Don Bokhart, president of the Wawasee School Board.

Bokhart also noted it does not seem appropriate to expand the school voucher program when Indiana ranks 39th in the nation for per-pupil spending and its public school teachers are receiving the lowest salary growth in the nation during the last 20 years.

Troyer said, “We do believe in choice for parents and being able to select the best education for their students and family,” but public school to public school is “the biggest, most popular form of school choice in Indiana.”

Krull also pointed out voters in November voted down a referendum for Wawasee schools “and we asked why do they need more money, but we won’t fight if we lose the money.” She said if the legislation is passed “we are throwing money out the window.”

Mishler’s Response

Mishler said in response to money being taken away from public schools, the answer is yes and no. He said the money follows the students and public schools will only lose money to private schools when students take vouchers to go to a private school, which is not occurring frequently in the Wawasee district. Public schools are already losing money when students attend a public school in a neighboring or nearby district.

“The money pot is the same,” he added.

He noted Bremen does have a private school, but doesn’t accept vouchers. Plymouth has a Catholic school, but is likely too far away for any students living in the Wawasee district to attend. Goshen and Warsaw also have private schools.

Mishler agrees with the concern about the lack of accountability for private schools, but did note if a private school accepts vouchers, they are required to give the same standardized tests as public schools are.

He said the voucher program was originally started to give lower-income families more choices for schooling, but part of the proposed legislation would raise the income eligibility for a family of four, for example, from $75,000 to $145,000. And, he added, April 8 is likely when the committee version of the budget will be released.