Mary Burke says she would stop expansion of voucher schools

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ^ | 9-26-14 | Patrick Marley

[afraidfortherepublic]

Democrat Mary Burke told education officials Friday she would fight as governor to stop the expansion of voucher schools but would leave alone the long-standing program in Milwaukee.

"This is something that may sound like a good political sound bite, but it is bad public policy," she said of expanding the voucher program.

"I think it is the thing that most threatens a vision of a public school system and an education for students in Wisconsin to be the leaders in our country."

Her comments drew applause from her audience at a Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators conference at the Concourse Hotel in Madison.

For more than 20 years, the state has run a program in Milwaukee that allows certain students to attend religious schools and other private institutions at taxpayer expense.

In recent years, a similar program was created for eastern Racine County and a more limited one for the rest of the state. Republican Gov. Scott Walker has championed those programs and said he wants to expand the statewide one.

Burke said she would leave alone the Milwaukee program, but indicated she wanted to halt the statewide voucher program.

"For the rest of the state, vouchers have no place and they are a drain on our public school system at a point at which we have very, very limited resources," she said. "So I do not see the research after 20 years in Milwaukee that says this is a way of improving student learning throughout the state.

[afraidfortherepublic]

Mary Burke is against school vouchers.

FReep Mail me if you want on, or off this Wisconsin interest ping list.

[mrsmel]

I have actually turned around to the belief that vouchers are not an unmitigated good, though for reasons completely different than the left’s. For one thing, in taking Caesar’s gold, private schools will be subject to Caesar’s regulations, and especially now in this era, that’s a bad thing (not that it would ever be good).

[YHAOS]

Mary Burke; Another good reason for the separation of School & State.

[johniegrad]

The question to ask this liberal is how she justifies continuing one program in one location while denying the same programs in others. Are all citizens being treated equally then or not?

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Whatever this Socialist is for, I’m agin’ it!

Love My Gov! :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I cannot WAIT for the debates! She’s gonna be like a deer in the headlights. Delightful!

[lapsus calami]

 

 

Just a stooge for the democrat/teacher's union machine.

 

 

[Mygirlsmom]

"I think it is the thing that most threatens a vision of a public school system and an education for students in Wisconsin to be the leaders in our country."

"Some peole have a way with words. Others...have not way?"

Steve Martin

[Obadiah]

Mary Burke says she would stop expansion of voucher schools

Well that should help her with the Milwaukee city vote... NOT.

But she probably plagiarized that idea anyway so it probably doesn't really matter.

[Obadiah]

Well now we see what words from Mary look like that are not plagiarized.

#theressomethingaboutmary

[Blood of Tyrants]

“Bad public policy” means it would be bad for DemocRats who get tens of millions of dollars from teacher’s unions every election cycle. It would be great for kids and parents who could finally get their kids out of failing public schools.

[VRW Conspirator]

Allow vouchers though a constitutional amendment.

[spankalib]

I see vouchers NOT as TAKING Caesar’s gold - that’s a leftist way of viewing it...
I see vouchers as not giving Caesar OUR gold.

[mrsmel]

I agree with that, but that's not how the government will choose to see it if they were to agree to vouchers. You and I both know that anytime they take our money, they feel entitled to make the rules as to how it can or must be spent when they give a fraction of it back. They do it in all kinds of areas.

[spankalib]

How they “choose to see it” is not a reflection of reality so much as it is a product of their narcissistic worldview.
I do not “see” the same way they do, and I don’t care for their twisty lies bent to serve their power-hungry agenda.

Either way, whether they “give $$” (which they DON’T), or
“anytime they take our money, they feel entitled to make the rules” - they will accrue naked power.

Vouchers is keeping our money. The wicked are NEITHER taking nor giving it. WE win.

[Senator_Blutarski]

A couple of decades ago a friend of mine was a school board member in La Crosse, Wisconsin. The board was considering expanding one of the city's high schools to handle a projected increase of about 100 additional students. My friend stood up and suggested the school board offer up to 100 public school students free tuition at the local Catholic HS. He said “it would cost half as much as sending them to the public HS and they'll get a better education”. (— I hope I remembered the details correctly)

[EDINVA]

So what? Walker let Christie campaign for him! What’s worse?

(yes, /sarc)

[tnlibertarian]

I have actually turned around to the belief that vouchers are not an unmitigated good

I agree, both for the reason you cited and the fact that if you have to sacrifice to pay for the private school, you will care more than if you have part or all of it paid for by the taxpayers. I send my son to private school, and it may sound snobbish, but I don't want kids there whose parents aren't willing to write the check themselves. Does that mean some poor kids that would be good additions to the school can't afford it? Yep. But most families could afford it by giving up the Disney vacations and new cars every three years.

A better solution would be to end all public funding of schools. You made 'em, you educate 'em.

[mrsmel]

I'm trying to say that if the government were to agree, they would then feel entitled to force private schools who accepted the vouchers (our money) to follow their guidelines, which would eventually find the schools being forced to not teach the Bible or Christian morality, for instance. You and I know that this is wrong, it's wrong of the government to see it that way, as they're only giving us a little of our money back, but the fact is that that is the way the government operates, at all times, in everything.

They've only just recently proven this by trying to require Catholic adoption agencies to adopt children out to sodomites, and by trying to force Catholic hospitals to perform abortions.