Brigitte Blom is the CEO of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, and for the Courier Journal, she explains why Kentucky should reject the proposed voucher amendment.
If voters approve Amendment 2, which would allow public tax dollars to be directed to private and parochial schools, the constitution would no longer provide protections for the separation of church and state, would no longer provide protections for taxpayer dollars to be used only for public purposes and would remove the protection that the General Assembly be prohibited from targeting specific areas of the state with legislation.
Passing Amendment 2 will result in significant changes to Kentucky’s long-standing, foundational documents and have far-reaching, likely negative, implications.
Regarding education specifically, voucher programs, which could be funded under Amendment 2 and are referred to nationally as “school choice,” have consistently failed to demonstrate significant improvements in student test scores. Worse, as states have moved from target “school choice” programs to more universal state approaches, outcomes for students have declined.
Kentucky cannot afford investment strategies that show not only no positive return — but, in fact, show a negative return. Further, Kentucky’s public schools operate under uniform accountability standards, ensuring that all students receive measurable, data-backed educational improvements. While public education has a way to go to ensure strong outcomes for all students, private schools offer no accountability for the public dollar — leaving taxpayers in the dark about educational quality and outcomes — and the return for our shared investment.
Should Amendment 2 pass, it poses a significant financial threat to the state and to public education.
