MASON CITY – Vouchers for private Iowa schools paid for with taxpayers’ dollars have many crying foul, and Mason City’s state Representative, Sharon Steckman, says the many millions of dollars ready to be doled out by Kim Reynolds is an attack on the public school system.
Governor Kim Reynolds signed the Students First Act into law back in January of this year. The act created a voucher system for applications for funding for students to attend private schools. Earlier this month, the Iowa Department of Education announced that 18,893 Students First education savings accounts (ESAs) were approved. Up to 29,000 applications had been submitted.
Many public school advocates say that private schools don’t serve the greater good, and the money from taxpayers won’t be accountable.
Here’s the latest from public school proponent and state representative Sharon Steckman of Mason City:
The Governor announced on Thursday that she’s handing over $144 million of our public taxpayer dollars to private schools through her new voucher program.
As a former teacher, it’s appalling. And it’s way more money than she told us it would cost back in January.
This isn’t about empowering parents; it’s just all politics. The Governor has been determined to upend public schools since day one, from undermining teachers in their own classrooms, to slashing funding year after year, to pushing her culture wars into our schools.
Now, she is handing over $144 million taxpayer dollars to special interests and private schools. That will only increase year after year.
But here is the good news. Iowans disagree with her on this one. Iowans can smell when something isn’t right and we know it’s wrong to send $144 million dollars of our tax dollars to private schools.
We have to make sure all Iowans understand the devastating impact vouchers have on our public schools and hold Republican legislators accountable.
This program in the end will be a win for everyone. If public schools want to keep their students, they are actually going to have to up their game and actually teach our kids. Scores have been going down for decades in Iowa schools. The public schools will find their weakness and correct it to keep the students. Steckman reminds me of a crying toddler that doesn’t get what they want. Private schools have proven that they are doing a better job of teaching kids, it is in the student scores, right there in plain sight. Now public schools, start producing better student scores and you will gain more students and not lose them!
Back when you were in school, about 20% were considered college material and they took the ACT and SAT tests. The kids that took the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills were kids in non-special programs. (in other words, kids not in special education classes). Low ability students were exempt. Today, 80-90% of seniors take the college entrance exams. All kids, including special education students, take the Iowa skills tests. That is why scores are lower. If you take the top 10% of kids and test them, their average scores would probably be in the 95-99% range. If you add in the next 40% (1/2 of a class) the scores would drop considerably. If you throw in all students, an even greater drop would occur. Statistics can be manipulated. When No Child Left Behind (a Republican and Democrat proposal) was instituted in this country, many educators tried to warn the nation about the problems associated with using test scores to measure “learning”. Schools throughout the country found ways to manipulate their scores to avoid being put on a “needs improvement” list.
You made a statement “Private schools have proven that they are doing a better job of teaching kids,”. Show me your evidence. Show me that the playing field is level, too. In Iowa, the private schools don’t have the same rules as do the public schools. They can pick and choose their students. They don’t have to release any data about how well or how poorly their students are performing. Did you know that the laws passed last year by the Iowa legislature largely do not affect private schools?
Before you make asinine statements, you might want to read up on what you are regurgitating.
Oh, bullsh*t. It’s the exact opposite.
How so? What is bullsh*t?
Still waiting.
There is a reason for this. Public schools suck and always have.
That is what people say about you.
Kimmie’s best buddy, Betsy DeVos, is very proud of her work to dismantle public schools.
What does a retired art teacher know about anything?
A lot more than you. I know you were a low level, middle manager who did all the company’s dirty work whle professing to be a good guy.
See, I actually know who you are and what little you did with your life while you are still pretending to know something about me.
Well lets see here. I was Plant Manager, manager of manufacturing engineering, Quality Control Manager, VP of Operations, world Operations and Manufacturing Manager and, Oh yes, General Manager of a $570 million dollar operation. And, you were a art teacher and gay.
and they paid you what $20,000 a year and gave you no retirement. Yeah, you were really important. And you are still wrong about me.
You really have no idea how much I made a year. It was considerably more than you think or ever made.
I know you made enemies and you made your neighborhood dumber.