D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program

Last updated

The D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program provides scholarships to low-income children in Washington D.C. for tuition and other fees at participating private schools. The program was the first Federally funded school voucher program in the United States. It was first approved in 2003 and allowed to expire for the first time in 2009 under the Obama administration. [1] The program was reauthorized under the SOAR Act in 2011, but again defunded at the end of the second Obama presidency. The program was reinstated under President Trump. [2]

Contents

Background

In 2004, President George W. Bush signed the D.C. School Choice Incentive Act of 2003, creating the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program to provide scholarships to students from low-income families to attend a private school of choice. [1] The program targeted 2,000 children from low-income families in Washington D.C. These children were given funding to help offset the cost of private schooling. [1] In 2008, the program funded attendance at 54 D.C. private schools for students from families with an average income of $22,736, "or about 107 percent of the federal poverty level for a family of four." [1]

In 2009 the program faced a phase out with President Barack Obama's 2009 budget proposal cutting all funding for the program and including language to prohibit any new students from receiving scholarships. [3]

In 2011, Speaker of the House John Boehner and Senator Joe Lieberman introduced the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Act to restore funding for the program and again allow new students to participate. The entirety of the SOAR Act was included in the 2011 long-term continuing resolution, the passage of which resulted in a five-year reauthorization of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program. [4] The 2004 legislation had permitted students to receive scholarships of up to $7,500, whereas the 2011 bill provides scholarships of up to $8,000 for students in kindergarten through eighth grade and up to $12,000 for students in grades 9-12. [5]

In February 2012, President Barack Obama announced his budget proposal for 2013, which did not include new funding for the program. [6] According to ABC News, the budget stated that the program's budget for 2012 had enough money to also cover students' vouchers in 2013, but did not mention future years. [6] The lack of funding was criticized by conservatives, including The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal columnist Jason L. Riley, who argued that the program costs less per child and has a higher graduation rate than public schools in Washington D.C. [7] [8]

Program Administrator

Between 2004 and 2010, the Washington Scholarship Fund, a nonprofit group, administered the program, which was funded at $12 million a year. [1]

From 2010-2016, the D.C. Children and Youth Investment Trust Corporation served as the administrator of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program. The program was appropriated to receive $20 million per year, [9] beginning in the 2012-13 school year. [5]

Beginning in 2017, the program is being admistered by Serving Our Children DC https://servingourchildrendc.org

Funding Status

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

Note: FY 2004 was the first year of funding for this program. Funds are appropriated to the District of Columbia to be administered and awarded by the Department of Education. Annual funding status estimates [ permanent dead link ] provided by U.S. Department of Education.

Support and success

The program has received support from a number of prominent D.C. politicians, including former mayor Anthony A. Williams, former D.C. Council member Kevin P. Chavous and former D.C. Board of Education president Peggy Cooper Cafritz. [1] It was opposed by Mayor Vincent C. Gray. [10]

In 2010, a randomized controlled trial conducted under the auspices of the Department of Education examined the impacts of the OSP students. While the study reported that there "is no conclusive evidence that the OSP affected student achievement," the program was found to have a significant impact on graduation rates. [11] Students who were offered vouchers had a graduation rate of 82%, while those who actually used their vouchers had a graduation rate of 91%. By comparison, the rate for students who did not receive vouchers was only 70%. The study received the Department of Education's highest rating for scientific rigor. [12] Over 90% of the study's participants were African American, and most of the remainder were Latino American.

Further research found that students who received vouchers were 25% more likely to enroll in college than students with similar demographic characteristics who did not receive vouchers. [13]

Related Research Articles

A school voucher, also called an education voucher in a voucher system, is a certificate of government funding for students at schools chosen by themselves or their parents. Funding is usually for a particular year, term, or semester. In some countries, states, or local jurisdictions, the voucher can be used to cover or reimburse home schooling expenses. In some countries, vouchers only exist for tuition at private schools.

School choice is a term for education options that allow students and families to select alternatives to public schools. It is the subject of fierce debate in various state legislatures across the United States.

Education in the United States is provided in public and private schools and by individuals through homeschooling. State governments set overall educational standards, often mandate standardized tests for K–12 public school systems and supervise, usually through a board of regents, state colleges, and universities. The bulk of the $1.3 trillion in funding comes from state and local governments, with federal funding accounting for about $260 billion in 2021 compared to around $200 billion in past years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">America's Promise</span> Foundation in the United States

America's Promise Alliance is the nation’s largest cross-sector alliance of nonprofit, community organizations, businesses, and government organizations dedicated to improving the lives of young people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Wise</span> American politician (born 1948)

Robert Ellsworth Wise Jr. is an American politician who served as the 33rd Governor of West Virginia from 2001 to 2005. A member of the Democratic Party, Wise also served in the United States House of Representatives from 1983 until 2001. In 2005 Wise became the president of the Alliance for Excellent Education, a nonprofit organization that focuses on reforming the nation's high schools. In 2015, North Carolina State University honored Wise with the William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation's Friday Medal which recognizes significant, distinguished and enduring contributions to education through advocating innovation, advancing education and imparting inspiration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upward Bound</span> Federally funded U.S. college readiness program

Upward Bound is a federally funded educational program within the United States. The program is one of a cluster of programs now referred to as TRiO, all of which owe their existence to the federal Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 and the Higher Education Act of 1965. Upward Bound programs are implemented and monitored by the United States Department of Education. The goal of Upward Bound is to provide certain categories of high school students better opportunities for attending college. The categories of greatest concern are those with low income, those with parents who did not attend college, and those living in rural areas. The program works through individual grants, each of which covers a restricted geographic area and provides services to approximately 59,000 students annually. The program focuses on academic and nonacademic resources and activities like visits to museums or tutoring for school work. Students are encouraged to be involved in Upward Bound for the entire academic year and a 6-week long summer program. Many students who are also granted access into the Upward Bound program are labeled as first generation college students, who are students that are the first in their family to attend college. This program is set in place for students who come from low income families as well as underrepresented schools and gives them an opportunity to excel in college.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">No Child Left Behind Act</span> 2002 United States education reform law; repealed 2015

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) was a U.S. Act of Congress that reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act; it included Title I provisions applying to disadvantaged students. It supported standards-based education reform based on the premise that setting high standards and establishing measurable goals could improve individual outcomes in education. The Act required states to develop assessments in basic skills. To receive federal school funding, states had to give these assessments to all students at select grade levels.

The Children's Scholarship Fund is a privately funded tuition assistance program in the United States. The fund provides scholarships enabling low-income children to attend private schools. More than 25,700 students in Kindergarten to 8th Grade receive the fund's scholarships. It was founded in 1998 by Theodore J. Forstmann and John T. Walton.

The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) is the local public school system for Washington, D.C.. It is distinct from the District of Columbia Public Charter Schools (DCPCS), which governs public charter schools in the city.

A Pell Grant is a subsidy the U.S. federal government provides for students who need it to pay for college. Federal Pell Grants are limited to students with financial need, who have not earned their first bachelor's degree, or who are enrolled in certain post-baccalaureate programs, through participating institutions. Originally known as a Basic Educational Opportunity Grant, it was renamed in 1980 in honor of Democratic U.S. Senator Claiborne Pell of Rhode Island. A Pell Grant is generally considered the foundation of a student's financial aid package, to which other forms of aid are added. The Federal Pell Grant program is administered by the United States Department of Education, which determines the student's financial need and through it, the student's Pell eligibility. The U.S. Department of Education uses a standard formula to evaluate financial information reported on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for determining the student's Expected Family Contribution (EFC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milwaukee Public Schools</span>

Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) is the largest school district in Wisconsin. As of the 2015–16 school year, MPS served 75,568 students in 154 schools and had 9,636 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff positions. The Milwaukee Public Schools system is the one of the largest in the United States by enrollment. A publicly elected school board, the Milwaukee Board of School Directors, provides direction and oversight, with a superintendent heading the organization's administration.

The Habele Outer Island Education Fund is a South Carolina–based charitable organization serving K-12 aged students in Micronesia. Habele's initial geographic focus was the so-called "Outer Islands" of Yap State as well as lagoon and outer islands in neighboring Chuuk State in the Federated States of Micronesia. It now serves students of all backgrounds throughout the Freely Associated States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michelle Rhee</span> American educational reformer

Michelle Ann Rhee is an American educator and advocate for education reform. She was Chancellor of District of Columbia Public Schools from 2007 to 2010. In late 2010, she founded StudentsFirst, a non-profit organization that works on education reform.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act</span>

The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act or Serve America Act was introduced in the United States House of Representatives on March 9, 2009, by Representative Carolyn McCarthy of New York. Originally titled the Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act, the bill reauthorizes and expands the AmeriCorps program that was first established in 1993. It passed in the House of Representatives on March 18, 2009. The U.S. Senate debated and approved an amended version of the bill on March 26, 2009, renaming it the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, after Senator Ted Kennedy. The House of Representatives voted on the bill a second time, approving the amended version on March 31, 2009. It was signed by President Barack Obama on April 21, 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Path to Prosperity</span> U.S. budget proposal of the Republican Party

The Path to Prosperity: Restoring America's Promise was the Republican Party's budget proposal for the Federal government of the United States in the fiscal year 2012. It was succeeded in March 2012 by "The Path to Prosperity: A Blueprint for American Renewal", the Republican budget proposal for 2013. Representative Paul Ryan, Chairman of the House Budget Committee, played a prominent public role in drafting and promoting both The Path to Prosperity proposals, and they are therefore often referred to as the Ryan budget, Ryan plan or Ryan proposal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">District of Columbia School Reform Act of 1995</span>

The District of Columbia School Reform Act of 1995 was passed by the United States Congress. Since Washington, D.C. is a semi-autonomous non-state, Congress has jurisdiction over the city and passed the Omnibus Consolidated Rescissions and Appropriations Act of 1996. Title I amended the D.C. School Reform Act in 1995, making charter schools part of the public-education system in Washington. Unlike the states, the District of Columbia had relatively little opposition to charter schools from politicians and the public; what opposition existed was not firmly entrenched due to controversy within the union. A strong advocate in getting the act passed was the advocacy group Friends of Choice in Urban Schools (FOCUS), which continues to lobby for charter schools in the district. The act created the District of Columbia Public Charter School Board (PCSB) as the city's second, independent authorizer of public charter schools in the city. Board members are nominated by the mayor of Washington, D.C. and approved by the DC Council. In 2006, the D.C. Board of Education voted to relinquish its charter-authorizing authority.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chad Barefoot</span> American politician

John Chadwick "Chad" Barefoot is a former Republican member of the North Carolina Senate, representing North Carolina's 18th Senate district from 2013 to 2018. Senate District 18 covers Franklin County and parts of eastern and southern Wake County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Step Up For Students</span> Non-profit organization in the USA

Step Up for Students is a 501(c)3 nonprofit in Florida providing low income students, bullied students and students with special needs with scholarships to help pay tuition for private school, assistance to attend an out of district public school, or for tutoring, textbooks or therapies. Step Up For Students was created as part of a merger between Florida's two largest scholarship organizations Florida P.R.I.D.E and Children First, which was founded by Tampa Bay businessman John Kirtley. Kirtley had founded a previous scholarship organization, Children's Scholarship Fund of Tampa Bay in 1998 and received more than 15,000 applications for 750 available scholarships. The large demand led Kirtley to help push for the creation of the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, which was signed into law in 2001. That scholarship program allows donors to receive dollar for dollar tax credits for contributions to nonprofits offering scholarships to low-income students in Florida. The scholarship was capped at $50 million for the 2002-03 school year and scholarships were awarded to 15,585 students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolyn Thompson Taylor</span> American politician

Carolyn Thompson Taylor is an American academic and politician who served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1984 to 1992. Before running for office, Taylor taught AP government at Norman High School from 1979 to 1984. While in the House, she was chair of the Education Committee and Appropriations Sub-Committee on Education. She was a principal author of numerous landmark education bills involving both Higher Education and Public Schools. She also authored legislation concerning health care for children and family leave. While in office she was an adjunct professor at Oklahoma Baptist University and the University of Oklahoma. After leaving office, Taylor was vice president of academic affairs at the University Center of Tulsa and later a distinguished professor of political science at Rogers State.

School choice in the U.S. state of Florida is a suite of state programs that allow families to use public resources to receive education outside of their neighborhood public school. Florida's Tax Credit Scholarship (FTC) program is the largest of its kind in the U.S., with more students than all but the state's largest school districts.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Strauss, Valerie; Bill Turque (9 June 2008). "Fate of D.C. Voucher Program Darkens". The Washington Post . Washington, D.C. pp. 1–2. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
  2. ↑ "Trump administration reverses Obama policy on D.C. Vouchers".
  3. ↑ Zimmerman, Mark (13 May 2009). "Obama proposal seen as beginning of end for school voucher program". Catholic News Service . Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ↑ "Disadvantaged Children Win as US House Passes Voucher Bill". PRNewswire. 30 March 2011. Archived from the original on 1 April 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2017.
  5. 1 2 "Digest for H.R. 471 112th Congress, 1st Session". GOP.gov. 30 March 2011. Archived from the original on 12 September 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
  6. 1 2 Ford, Sam (February 14, 2012). "D.C. school voucher funding left out of 2013 federal budget". ABC News. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  7. ↑ Burke, Lindsey (February 13, 2012). "Obama's Budget Ends Funding for D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program". The Foundry. The Heritage Foundation. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  8. ↑ Jason L. Riley (February 14, 2012). "Obama's War on School Vouchers". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  9. ↑ Samuels, Robert (25 June 2011). "Parents rush to apply for D.C. private school vouchers". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  10. ↑ "Much-Debated Scholarship Program for D.C. Students Is Renewed". The Washington Post. June 18, 2012. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
  11. ↑ Wolf, Patrick. "Evaluation of the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program: Final Report" (PDF). U.S. Department of Education -- Institute of Education Sciences.
  12. ↑ "WWC Quick Review of the Report "Evaluation of the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program: Final Report"" (PDF). U.S. Department of Education -- Institute of Education Sciences. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-06-14.
  13. ↑ "Funding Cuts for Programs That Send More Kids to Graduation AND College?". Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice. Archived from the original on 2014-03-07.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.