House, Senate pass voucher bill

7 Comments

1. 

   Rachel Craig on January 31, 2025 at 9:45 pm

   I’m a Democrat but I used to be ok with Becky Massey being my Senator. Thought she was thoughtful and practical. Not any more. She knows this is a bad bill and voted for it anyway. Gotta stick with the tribe so they don’t vote you off the island, I guess.
   Even if I were pro-voucher, I wouldn’t have supported this bill. It’s anything but fiscally conservative and is mostly welfare for the well you do.

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2. 

   Joan G. on January 31, 2025 at 11:36 am

   Make no mistake, the Governor’s voucher bill does nothing to improve children’s education. Instead, it is a betrayal by elected officials to all families of children with and without disabilities. This real threat to the existence of our public schools was done by Republicans and the billionaires who brought them to power. In every case where vouchers were brought to voters, they were overwhelmingly rejected by voters in both political parties.

   The “Education Freedom Act of 2025” will have long term detrimental effects on children with and without disabilities. For families with children who have disabilities, the concept of school choice is misleading. These children are frequently denied admission to private schools, either overtly or because these schools lack the specialized staff needed to provide adequate support. Additionally, private schools are not required to ensure access to the general curriculum, adhere to individualized education programs, or comply with other essential components of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). They also have the right to expel students based on their disabilities. Often, parents only discover that they have waived their IDEA rights after their child is enrolled in a private school and services and supports are not provided. In contrast, public schools are legally obligated to uphold the rights of children with disabilities and their families under IDEA.

   I hope everyone remembers which elected reps decided to starve our public schools to satisfy their billionaire funders.

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3. 

   Charles Reeves Jr on January 31, 2025 at 9:56 am

   I wonder how many of the YAY folks have children in a private school. I also wonder if religious schools are included.

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     Sandra Clark on January 31, 2025 at 10:03 am

     Charles: Religious schools were not excluded. I’m expecting to see the William Jennings Bryan elementary school established in a church basement to eliminate “woke” and promote all things WJB.

4. 

   Michael Moats on January 31, 2025 at 8:51 am

   I didn’t see the story posted yesterday, so I will comment on this one.

   I am for school choice. A kid that lives in a bad area, with a bad school, should not be made to go to that school when there are better ones out there just because of where they live. If the bad schools don’t have many kids in it for that reason, it’s up to them, the school board, and whoever else to make it better. I do not support spending taxpayer dollars to send kids to private schools. Use that money to send them to a better public school. This reeks of more handouts and will only water down the high standards of most private schools.

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     Sandra Clark on January 31, 2025 at 9:07 am

     Michael: I agree that public schools should be zone-free with system transportation for a zoned school and parental responsibility for attendance at a non-zoned school. I suspect a parent/student could win a lawsuit on that. Here’s a link to my opinion column from Thursday — not bad if I do say so myself: https://www.knoxtntoday.com/public-money-in-private-schools-bad-idea/

5. 

   Sharon H on January 31, 2025 at 8:27 am

   I hope voters will remember which reps stood up for our children and which reps did not.

   Reply