It took a while, but an education bill of immediate importance to children in Washington, D.C., schools, and of symbolic importance to every child in the country, was passed by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Friday morning. The measure will now head for consideration by the full House.
It took three days to come to a final vote because opponents are waging an all-out battle to destroy the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act, a program that bolsters district public schools, charter schools, and enables more than 1,100 poor students annually the opportunity to attend private schools by choice.
The program has had broad support from mayors and city council members in the past. Just last year, Mayor Muriel Bowser and eight council members endorsed the program. But this week, a majority of council members signed a letter opposing it. It’s hard to imagine what induced them to oppose a measure that will provide the district with $225 million over the five-year life of the bill with virtually no strings attached.
Even better, no student attends a school that is funded by this program without having chosen to do so. Such choice enables families to find the best school environment to fit their student, rather than trying to fit the student into the school. This basic right of a parent to educate a child as they see fit is why millions of parents in states from Wisconsin to Florida to right here in the District of Columbia support widespread opportunities for students: public, private or charter.
Leaders from throughout Washington have been advocating for this program for years. From the leadership of the Federal City Council and former Mayor Anthony Williams, to former Councilman Kevin Chavous to the owner of the Washington Capitals and titans of industry here, to the parents in the most deprived communities, this program’s only detractors remain those who rely on the status quo for their existence. Teachers unions have suffered financial losses as parents have been able to vote with their feet here and throughout the country, and they have decided to fight any chance to let parents make those choices.
New York’s preeminent Catholic leader, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, just this week in the Wall Street Journal recalled that a program like the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program was defeated in the New York legislature in 2015 despite the support of the governor, Republican and Democratic state legislators and more than 30 labor unions, because teachers unions were able to block it.
It’s time to put politics aside and come together as a city to embrace Congressional support of options in the capital city. Here are the top three reasons for members of the House and Senate to follow the Government Oversight Committee’s lead and approve the bill:
- The SOAR Act’s three sector strategy has improved education for students in all three sectors.
- The Opportunity Scholarship Program has helped students succeed and has produced both high parent satisfaction and sharply higher graduation rates. About 98 percent of all OSP students graduated from an OSP participating school, and 94 percent moved into some type of post-secondary education. In 2016, 87 percent of all OSP parents were satisfied with their child’s school and academic success.
- Educational choice is hugely popular. In 2016, 2,349 students applied for the remaining 234 opportunity scholarships. A staggering 20,880 students are on waiting lists for public charter schools in Washington, D.C.
The bill will reauthorize the SOAR Act for a full five years, ending the practice during the last six years in making it an annual political football. For the sake of the children of Washington, D.C., Congress should approve this measure, which benefits every student in the city, and send it to President Trump for his signature.
Jeanne Allen (@JeanneAllen) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. She is CEO and founder of the Center for Education Reform. If you would like to write an op-ed for the Washington Examiner, please read our guidelines on submissions here.
