Could school choice reduce killings?

Samuel Sean Collington was a 21-year old Temple University student from Delaware County. The senior, who was set to graduate this spring, had an incredibly bright future in front of him — “had” being the operative word.

But instead of following his dreams and chasing happiness, Mr. Collington’s life was snubbed out by a killer in North Philadelphia — robbed near his off-campus apartment, then ruthlessly murdered in broad daylight.

Far from an isolated event, this type of situation plays out daily in what is anything but a “City of Brotherly Love.” Philadelphia surpassed its staggering all-time record of 500 murders during Thanksgiving week — becoming the poster child for what not to be thankful.

With civility and respect having all but disappeared, people are increasingly asking what, if anything, can be done to reverse course.

The answer is simple, but just not easy: Real educational reform, otherwise known as school choice.

Each time another heinous crime makes the headlines, Mayor Jim Kenney spews the same monotonous babble that guns (rather than those actually committing the crimes) are the culprit. For most of Philadelphia’s politicians, someone, anyone, and everyone else is to blame: not enough gun control laws; inadequate funding; failed government-community partnerships; lack of mental health resources; and not enough redistribution of wealth.

Enter school choice. The dire situation in which we find ourselves boils down to our horrendously bad educational system, and, as a direct result, the lack of hope in our young people.

With little possibility of receiving a quality education, and prospects for a decent job almost nonexistent, many city youth see the dream of a stable and prosperous life as a cruel illusion. Faith is lost. At that point, when people feel they have nothing to lose, and nothing to live for, they resort to crime. The result is despair, fear, violence and murder.

Many of Philadelphia’s public schools are in shambles (despite adequate funding), and deathtraps for student and teacher alike, yet most parents have no options. Translation: When education is trumped by survival, everybody loses.

So why doesn’t the system change?

Greed.

Greed of pols to keep the status quo the way it is because it benefits a narrow few. And greed to keep the truth out of sight, buried behind 30-second sound bites come election time.

And the teachers’ unions are terrified of school choice because it would inject competition into our educational system, exposing just how inferior our schools have become. And when that occurs, the masses will finally see that the system’s failure has nothing to do with a lack of money.

Ironically, the pandemic proved just how desired school choice is. Many parents and teachers clamored for the right to switch schools based on vaccine and mask mandates (both pro and con), but found their options lacking. It’s sad that it took Covid-19 to illustrate just how valuable choice in education is.

Since so many of our politicians are in lockstep with wellfunded unions, school choice and voucher programs continue to be thwarted. But given the dire straits in which Philadelphia finds itself, how long can we accede to the misguided view that school choice is anathema to good education?

When parents have a choice in their children’s education, schools that perform will attract more students and succeed, and those that continue with the status quo will be forced to improve — or lose students and fail.

To be clear, Mayor Kenney, Gov. Wolf, and the state Legislature cannot, and should not, be held responsible for the city’s violence, as culpability must reside solely with the person pulling the trigger. With that said, however, their failure to act on implementing, much less even discussing, the only solution that stands a chance of working is shameful.

The likelihood of action from city leaders is virtually zero. Therefore, we can only hope that the next governor and Legislature will have the political will to do the right thing for all of Pennsylvania’s parents and students — but especially those in Philadelphia — by giving them a choice in that which matters most: their children’s education, and society’s future.

If we don’t make the right choice, how much more blood will continue to spill?