Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship for Students with Disabilities

Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Program

An Introduction to the Bill § HB 3393 Nelson. flv

Voucher Program Arguments Proponents Opponents §Low income students receive §Take dollars away from public more educational choice §Challenge public schools to improve through competition §Better education due to absence of bureaucracy §Give parents more influence over child’s education schools §Lack of accountability could lead to a misuse of funds §Limits low income students educational choice §Lower the quality of education by removing the most informed parents and students thus increasing segregation in schools along socioeconomic lines

Introduction: Take a Stand!!! Do you support a voucher program to help pay for private schools for children with disabilities? § Vote with your feet!!! – Strongly Agree, Simply Agree, Strongly Disagree, Simply Disagree. §

Introduction: Rethink Position!!! Would you support the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program Act if it would raise your Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) scores by eliminating the IEP subgroup? § Vote with your feet!!! – Strongly Agree, Simply Agree, Strongly Disagree, Simply Disagree. §

Introduction – Ethical Questions § Potential ethical dilemmas will surface for the school administrator with the passage of HB 3393. § Ethic of Care - Who are the silenced voices?

History of Vouchers

§Each state currently pays a pre-decided amount per student to the public school each student attends. §Currently in Oklahoma, parents choosing an option other than the public school in their district may select §Home Schooling §Private Schooling §Transfer §Vouchers allow parents of disabled children to select a private school from an accredited list for their child to attend. The voucher allows the pre-decided amount per student from the state to be paid to a private school.

1872 French Government Recommended Vouchers

1955 U. S. Economist Milton Friedmen Recommended Vouchers

1956 Virginia Legislature Passed “tuition grants”

1960 Virginia Legislature Passed “scholarships”

1960’s Presidents Lyndon Johnson & Richard Nixon Supported vouchers

1971 Nixon’s Panel on Non-Public Education Of the Commission of School Finance Proposed Parochiaid

1971 Supreme Court Ruled Lemon -v- Kurtzman A three prong test for state money to go to private schools 1) The purpose is secular. 2) Its main effect is to neither advance nor inhibit religion. 3) It does not excessively entangle the state with religion.

1983 1985 1986 The Reagan administration tried to get vouchers passed through Congress.

1988 14 states pass school choice laws

1990 1991 1992 President Bush tried to get political support for Vouchers.

Former President Clinton §Supported school choice

Former President George W. Bush § Supported School Choice & Vouchers § Believed the money should follow the kid § Believed all institutions that received money should be held accountable.

President Barack Obama §Supports School Choice §Against Vouchers

Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Program Act HB 3393

The Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Program is established to provide a scholarship to a private school of choice for students with an IEP. The Program will begin Aug. 26, 2010.

§ The scholarship will be equal to the local and state revenue for the school district or the tuition at the private school, whichever is less § Approx. $7, 683. 00 per child

Requirements of Program Participation § Student must have a current IEP. § Student must have been enrolled in an Oklahoma public school the previous year.

§ The parent must notify the school district 60 days in advance. § The parent agrees to endorse the payment check each quarter. § The parent agrees to participate in school as required

§ The student agrees to attend school and abide by code of conduct.

What is Required of Schools? § Schools who intend to participate must notify the SDE by July 1 st.

Schools must have… § § § Have been open at least one year Meet accreditation guidelines Demonstrate fiscal soundness Comply with antidiscrimination provisions Abide by health & safety laws

Participating schools must… § Be academically accountable to parents § Follow rules set forth by the SDE

Participating schools must… § “Employ or contract with teachers who hold baccalaureate or higher degrees, or have at least three years of teaching experience in public or private schools, or have special skills, knowledge, or expertise that qualifies them to provide instruction in subjects taught. ”

Who Has Gone Before Oklahoma?

Wisconsin § Milwaukee Parental Choice Program 1985. § 2006 – Enrollment cap at 22, 500 (Lips, 2007).

Florida John M. Mc. Kay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities. § Enacted for the 2000 – 2001 school year. “Student participation in the Mc. Kay Scholarship Program has continued to grow. ” (Lips, 2007) §

Feeling the Florida Heat? http: //www. floridaschoolchoice. org/Information/Mc. Kay/files/Fast_Facts_Mc. Kay. pdf

Georgia § Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Act passed in 2007. Senate bill 10 was approved with a vote of 91 to 84. (Lips, 2007)

Georgia 4, 100 students were projected to receive scholarships in 2007. § There is no data, or accountability as to how many are receiving scholarships now. § Georgia Council of Administrators of Special Education (GCASE) strongly opposed Senate Bill 10. § http: //www. g-case. org/pdf_docs/GCASEPosition-SB 10. pdf

Ohio § Special Education Scholarship Program 2005. http: //www. ncsl. org/Issues. Research/Education/School. Choice. Vouchers/tabid/12942/Default. aspx

Utah § Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarship Program 2005. § Parent Choice in Education Act 2007. http: //www. ncsl. org/Issues. Research/Education/School. Choice. Vouchers/tabid/12942/Default. aspx

Is Current Law Adequate? Forest Grove School Dist. v. T. A. - 08305 (2009) § School Districts win (62. 5%) of private placement cases § Mc. Kay Scholarship for Students – 6. 7% § "Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Children with Disabilities" - No Cap §

Will Costs Rise? § § The voucher is for $7, 500 per year According to Edmond Public Schools Chief Financial Officer David Fraser, in 2007 -08 the district spent $17. 7 million for the direct support of special education, which was 15. 4 percent of the total budget. This was $6, 587 per child for 2, 687 children requiring mild to severe special educational needs. During the same time the cost to educate the regular school population was $5, 764 per pupil. http: //www. edmondsun. com/local/x 519248155/Specialneeds-student-scholarships-under-review July 2009

Will Enrollments Rise? § When state’s shift away from paying for each incidence of disability to a “census” approach, the growth of special education slows (Buck, Green, 2010)

Private Special Education Placements 2003 -04 Oklahoma ranks 20 th with. 12 percent of Total Enrollment

Will Sufficient Services Be Provided? Florida’s Mc. Kay 30. 2% of voucher participants said they received all services required under federal law from their public school (Greene, Forester, 2003) § A large survey that “almost 90% of Mc. Kay respondents…were satisfied or very satisfied with the school their child attends, whereas only 71. 4% of public school respondents were satisfied or very satisfied with the school their child attends. ” (Weidner & Herrington, 2006) §

Will Some Students Be Left Behind? As the number of private schools increased that accepted Mc. Kay funding increased the standardized test scores of disabled students who remained in public school significantly increased. § Virtually all disabled students in public schools take the state mandated test. §

Are Private Schools Accountable? § National Education Association Statement: “Vouchers students are not included in state assessments, so taxpayers have no way of knowing how the voucher funds have been spend, and how students have fared. ” NEA Resolution A-24. Voucher Plans and Tuition Tax Credits.

Questions and Concerns Regarding Special Education Vouchers

References Buck, S. , & Greene, J. P. (2010, Winter). School choice campaign: The case for special education vouchers. Education Next, 10(1). Retrieved from http: //educationnext. org/the-case-for-specialeducation-vouchers/ Bush, G. (Director) (2003, July 1). Education Reform & Parental Options. Education Reform. Lecture conducted from Kipp Academy, Washington, D. C. . Finn, C. E. , Rotherham, A. J. , & Hokanson, C. R. (2001). Rethinking special education for a new century. Thomas B. Fordham Foundation and Progressive Policy Institute. Download available at http: //www. edexcellence. net/issues/results. cfm? withall=rethinking+ special+education&search_btn. x=0&search_btn. y=0 Greene, J. P. , & Winters, M. A. (2007, Spring). Debunking a special education myth. Education Next, 7(2). Retrieved from http: //educationnext. org/debunking-a-special-education-myth/

References Lick, D. (2007, April 25). Education Notebook: Georgia lawmakers approve vouchers for students with disabilities. Retrieved June 23, 2010 from http: //georgiastate. edu Molnar, A. (n. d. ). EPSL | Education Policy Studies Laboratory - Arizona State University. Retrieved June 24, 2010, from http: //epsl. asu. edu Obama, B. (Director) (2008, August 1). Obama at the National Urban League. Presidental Speech. Lecture conducted from Urban League, Orlando. Turnbull, H. R. , Stowe, M. J. , & Huerta, N. E. (2007). Free appropriate public education: The law and children with disabilities. Denver, CO: Love Publishing

References Weidner, V. R. , & Herrington, C. D. (2006, January). Are Parents Informed Consumers: Evidence From the Florida Mc. Kay Scholarship Program. Peabody Journal of Education, 81(1), 27 - 56. doi: 10. 1207/S 15327930 pje 8101_3 Wright P. W. D. , & Wright, P. D. (2007). Special education law (2 nd ed. ). Hartfield, VA: Harbor House Law Press.