EDUCATING OUR CHILDREN
Each Student Deserves The Best Opportunities
Monday, Aug 11, 2008
By CHRIS SAXMAN
RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH GUEST COLUMNIST
Education is the first rung on the ladder of success for any citizen. As Thomas Jefferson said, “If the children . . . are untaught, their ignorance and vices will in future life cost us much dearer, in their consequences, than it would have done, in their correction, by a good education.”
Everyone deserves the opportunity to find the best way to reach that first rung so that we all benefit from an educated society. Sadly, today many children are struggling to reach that first rung, leading the Rev. Al Sharpton to state “education reform is the civil rights issue of our time.”
To help bring about needed changes, he has partnered with New York City Schools Chancellor Joel Klein to form the Education Equality Project. Endorsed by an impressive, bipartisan list of leaders, they are focused on massive educational reforms, including providing parents greater choices, and giving all children “a real shot at achieving the American dream.”
Today, one can be educated in public schools, at home with parents, online taking classes from all over the world, in colleges and universities, or in private, parochial, or charter schools. Education as a product is ever evolving because society is demanding change — which oftentimes is a difficult embrace.
Sadly, this reluctance to embrace change means that for many children, the very first rung on the ladder to success is not available because their parents cannot afford or do not live in an area where those different choices exist. Without the right educational options, they are falling behind their American and foreign peers in the market for jobs, higher wages, and a better quality of life.
BY CREATING a more competitive and diverse K-12 educational system, we can offer what every child deserves — an opportunity to be educated in an environment which best suits that unique child. We should not limit ourselves to fitting every child into one educational model, nor should we try to make one educational model so broad as to fit every child. Instead, we should embrace the choices that are already affordable and available.
In many parts of Virginia, families are fortunate to have access to good, safe public schools. Sadly, not every family has that access. They are limited to overcrowded schools or schools struggling to make state standards. Many times, single moms, single dads, grandparents, or foster parents are working to raise children in extremely difficult circumstances. And even the best schools may not be the right fit for all students, as even a “good” kid from a “good” family can encounter problems. For many students and their families, simply changing their educational environment can make all the difference.
Years ago, Virginia embraced the idea for higher education that one size doesn’t fit all, and that different students need different educational environments to best meet their educational needs. What the commonwealth also recognized is that by giving these students a grant, our private colleges could educate students while saving the commonwealth significant amounts of money, which then can be invested back into higher education. These Tuition Assistance Grants — vouchers by another name — work to make Virginia’s higher education system one of the best and most diverse in the country.
Similarly, school choice is not about taking money away from public education. As school systems across the country have discovered, school choice can save money that then can be invested back in our public schools.
IT IS for these reasons that we founded School Choice Virginia. Education should not be about politics, and it should not be about maintaining a status quo. Education is about giving every student the chance to excel, the chance to succeed, and the chance to achieve the American Dream. It should not be about pitting public schools against private schools, charter schools against home schooling, but about embracing the many different ways in which we can provide hope and opportunity to all children in all families.
School Choice Virginia is a coalition of concerned citizens who care about the future of our children’s education. Virginia has worked very hard to create great public schools, but we can do more if we embrace change in the name of freedom and opportunity.
School Choice Virginia is committed to embracing the diversity of Virginia’s students, and creating the kinds of affordable opportunities where every student has the best chance at success — regardless of family income — be that public, private, parochial, charter, or home-schooling.
Chris Saxman, the founder of School Choice Virginia, represents the 20th District — Staunton and Highland County, and parts of Augusta and Rockingham Counties — in Virginia’s House of Delegates. Find out more at www.schoolchoiceva.com.
