Children and our schools

Vouchers help

Regarding “Clock strikes end for bills” (Page A1, Friday), if you asked me my views on school choice 10 years ago, I would have expressed vehement opposition. Why in the world should we allow taxpayer funds to leave the public school system? That was until I had my own children.

Early in their lives, two of my children were diagnosed with dyslexia and attended our neighborhood public school. It quickly became obvious that their educators simply did not have the resources required to teach children with this disability.

Although my family is fortunate enough to afford a specialized school, the recurring theme I hear from desperate parents is that they wish they could afford to send their children to one too.

This is why I support education choice for special needs children, which Texas legislators are considering this session. This would give families of special needs children the option of using a portion of their stateallocated public education funding for expenses such as private school tuition, tutoring or educational therapies.

As a taxpayer, would you rather fund a system that fails dyslexic students or one that enables customization to meet specific needs and help create productive citizens?

As a parent, a taxpayer and a former teacher, I urge lawmakers to pass education choice for our special needs community. For learning disabled children, it is not only the compassionate thing to do — it is fiscally responsible policy that will have positive effects for generations.

Alicia Giordano, Humble