Families will benefit from more choice, flexibility in education

The earliest known nod to the idea that became “education savings accounts” surfaced in Berkeley, Calif., in the days of disco, from the equity-driven impulses of two liberal law professors.

In their 1978 book “Education by Choice,” Jack Coons and Stephen Sugarman envisioned low-income parents creating “personally tailored education” for their children, using “divisible educational experiences.” State-funded scholarships would pay for those options, be it in traditional schools or living rooms, “minischools” or “educational parks.”

Coons and Sugarman later pursued a ballot initiative that aimed to bring education choice to every family in the state. But for a tragic twist of fate, deep-blue California may have left Florida in the dust.

Empowering parents has never been a conservative plot. But in its latest editorial against choice [“Tallahassee readies new, bigger attack on public schools

| Editorial,” Feb. 2], the Sun Sentinel rips a bill that would convert Florida’s school choice scholarships into education savings accounts, suggesting it’s all a shady scheme hatched by “privateers.”

I wish the Sun Sentinel could see what a rainbow coalition of choice supporters (including hundreds of thousands of Florida parents) sees: A lever to bring more equity to a system that sorts by race and class. A response to a pandemic that has left many families frustrated with their schools. A spark for innovation that would be a boon for educators.

I also wish the Sun Sentinel could get past the same, tired myths.

Right-wing roots? The editorial references Milton Friedman, the Nobel Prize-winning economist who was indeed a brilliant champion of choice. But in these days of division, the pantheon of choice champions stands out for its diversity. Why leave out Rosa Parks? Or Cesar Chavez? Or Barack Obama? All backed nondistrict options.

Siphoning money? The vast majority of choice scholarships are worth far less than the per-pupil average in district schools. In the case of the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, it’s 60 cents on the dollar. That’s why a stack of independent analyses shows savings to taxpayers — and none shows otherwise.

Constitutional end-run? We call this the “time machine myth.” Yes, the Florida Supreme Court struck down Florida’s first K-12 voucher (on dubious grounds) in

2006. But the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship

was created in 2001. So how, Sun Sentinel, could the Legislature get “creative” and create a means of “financing the program indirectly” through tax credits — after the 2006 ruling?

The myths rattle on.

Since the Family Empowerment Scholarship was created in 2018, choice opponents have repeated the lie that it’s the first “voucher” funded directly from the state treasury. No. For years, the state has spent billions of dollars, through multiple programs, helping parents pay for tuition at private preschools, K-12 schools and colleges. How odd that all of these other programs have just been overlooked.

The Sun Sentinel also wants readers to believe there’s no evidence of scholarship outcomes. But we do have evidence — most recently, a 2019 Urban Institute study that found tax-credit scholarship students (all low-income) are up to 43% more likely than their public-school peers to enroll in four-year colleges, and up to 20% more likely to earn bachelor’s degrees.

No fair-minded critic would pretend this information doesn’t exist. Or take cheap shots at executive salaries (at Step Up, they’re far below comparable nonprofits). Or suggest Step Up is somehow profiting (over the years we’ve raised $20 million in private money to carry out our mission).

Even if we disagree on the best path forward, don’t we all want the same thing? For public education to live up to its promise?

There’s no doubt Coons and Sugarman, the Berkeley law professors, wanted that in California. Their effort fizzled when U.S. Rep. Leo Ryan, the popular Democrat they enlisted to lead the ballot initiative, was murdered in Guyana by thugs working for the Peoples Temple cult.

Today, another tragedy is reshaping the debate. The pandemic showed millions more parents, from all walks of life, what it’s like to have no good options. Giving them more options isn’t “an attack on public schools.”

In the short term, it’s a thoughtful bid to help them in their time of need.

In the long run, it will mean even more families can shape the educational approach they know is best for their children.

Ron Matus is director of policy and public affairs at Step Up For Students, which administers five state education choice programs, and a former state education reporter for the Tampa Bay Times.