 |
Parents for Choice in Education (PCE) is an advocacy group in Utah that pushes for school choice programs including private school vouchers, and supports anti-union legislation.
|
Parents for Choice in Education (PCE) is an advocacy group in Utah that pushes for school choice programs including private school vouchers, and supports anti-union legislation.
PCE, headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, operates three organizations: Parents for Choice in Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization; [1] [2] Parents for Choice in Education, Inc., a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization; [3] [4] and a state political action committee or PAC. [5]
PCE was founded in 2002 as the "Utah Education Funding Project" with money from "All Children Matter", an anti-union, pro-voucher group based in Michigan. According to a KSL report, ACM's "funders include the son of a former Amway billionaire and an heir to the Wal-mart fortune." Out-of-state funding continues to be important to PCE. In 2007, KSL reported that the "political action committee for Parents for Choice in Education took in half a million dollars last year; half came from out-of-state, $240,000 from All Children Matter." [6] [7] [8]
PCE played a large role in the passage of Utah's Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarship, [9] a state funded program that provides private school scholarships to K–12 students with disabilities, [10] as well as the nation's first statewide, universal voucher program, [11] [12] which was later overturned through a statewide referendum. [13]
PCE's 2007, voucher fight was funded almost entirely by one man, Patrick M. Byrne, the founder and CEO of Overstock.com. Some of PCE's tactics during this campaign were criticized as "despicable" by critics including Wayne Holland, chair of the Utah Democratic Party. Among the tactics criticized was a push-poll which asked, "If you knew that the same group that opposes vouchers, the liberal national teacher's[ sic ] union, aggressively supports same-sex unions, higher taxes and more government involvement, would you be very or somewhat more or less likely to vote for or against the Utah referendum?" [14]
PCE continues to lobby in Utah. In the 2008, General Session of the Utah State Legislature, PCE supported House Bill 349, Open Enrollment Revisions, which lengthened the enrollment period for special permits in public schools. [15] [16] In 2009, PCE opposed a cap on charter schools. [17] [18]
PCE has supported anti-union bills even when they don't address school choice. In 2009, PCE initiated House Bill 328, which would have banned school districts from paying the salaries of union employees, [19] [20] and House Bill 210, which requires schools to post their collective bargaining agreements online. [21] In the 2010 General Session, PCE backed SB77, which would have prohibited school districts from paying for association leave. This bill failed in the Utah House of Representatives. [22]
PCE's website calls itself "UtahEducationFacts.com." [23] [24] [25]
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.
Olene Walker was an American politician who served as the 15th governor of Utah from 2003 to 2005, succeeding the governorship after Mike Leavitt's resignation. A member of the Republican Party, Walker was Utah's first female governor and the first female lieutenant governor of Utah.
Deseret Book is an American publishing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, that also operates a chain of bookstores throughout the western United States. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation (DMC), the holding company for business firms owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Deseret Book is a for-profit corporation registered in Utah. Deseret Book publishes under four imprints with media ranging from works explaining Latter-day Saint theology and doctrine, fiction, electronic resources, and sound recordings such, as The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square albums.
Gary Richard Herbert is an American politician who served as the 17th governor of Utah from 2009 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he chaired the National Governors Association during the 2015–2016 cycle.
Mark Leonard Shurtleff is an American attorney, former three-term Utah Attorney General, and founder of the Shurtleff Law Firm and the Shurtleff Group. He was a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of the law firm Troutman Sanders and served as a Salt Lake County Commissioner prior to being elected as Attorney General of the state of Utah.
D. Chris Buttars was an American politician who served in the Utah State Senate representing the 10th Utah Senate District. He began his service as a state senator in 2001 and resigned in 2011 citing health problems.
Murray High School is the only high school in the Murray City School District in Murray, Utah. Murray High School is located in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area with 1,465 students enrolled in the 2019–2020 academic year. The school enrolls students in grades 10–12. The school's mascot is the Spartan, and the school colors are orange and black. Murray High is a 5-A school in Utah's 6 Division high school sports leagues. The Disney Channel reality show High School Musical: Get in the Picture was shot on the Murray High campus in 2008, and American Idol season 7 runner-up David Archuleta attended the school. The school also offers the highest number of Salt Lake Community College Concurrent Enrollment classes in the state of Utah.
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.
Richard M. Eyre is a consultant, speaker, and author of many books. He was also a candidate for the Republican nomination for Utah governor in 1992.
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act or Right to Education Act (RTE) is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted on 4 August 2009, which describes the modalities of the importance of free and compulsory education for children between the age of 6 to 14 years in India under Article 21A of the Indian Constitution. India became one of 135 countries to make education a fundamental right of every child when the act came into force on 1 April 2010.
Association of American Educators (AAE) is a national, non-union, non-partisan professional educators association in the United States and is the fastest-growing association of its kind. Its stated mission is to “advance the profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection.” AAE also seeks to “promote excellence in education so that [teachers] receive the respect, recognition and reward they deserve.” AAE is officially nonpartisan. AAE is not a union or a lobbying organization, but licensed as a 501(c)(6) professional trade association. AAE is funded by dues from thousands of members located in all fifty states and the District of Columbia and by contributions to the AAE Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. AAE claims to “help lead a coalition of nearly 300,000 teachers across the country who have joined a non-union teacher association.”
The Utah Education Association (UEA) is the largest public education employees' union in the U.S. state of Utah, representing more than 18,000 teachers. It has local affiliates in 41 school districts, Applied Technology Colleges, and the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind in Ogden. It is the state affiliate of the National Education Association.
Lily Eskelsen García is an American teacher and labor union leader. She served as president of the National Education Association from 2014 to 2020.
Benjamin Michael McAdams is an American politician and attorney who served as the U.S. representative from Utah's 4th congressional district from 2019 to 2021. He was the only Democratic member of Utah's congressional delegation, and a member of the Blue Dog Coalition. From 2013 to 2019, he served as mayor of Salt Lake County, and from 2009 to 2012, he was the Utah state senator from the 2nd district, which includes Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake, and a portion of West Valley. McAdams was elected to Congress in 2018, narrowly defeating two-term Republican incumbent Mia Love. In 2020, McAdams ran for reelection, but he lost to Republican challenger Burgess Owens. He is the most recent Democrat to represent Utah in Congress.
Aaron Virl Osmond is a former Republican member of the Utah Senate, representing the 10th district. He resigned from office December 5, 2015.
Meridian School is a private non-denominational liberal arts school in Springville, Utah, serving students from preschool to twelfth grade.
Elizabeth Weight is a Democratic politician, who was a member of the Utah State House, representing the state's 31st house district, from 2017 through 2022.
Education in Utah has a long history that has led to a more efficient education system throughout the state.
School choice in the United States allows students and families to select alternatives to public schools. It is the subject of fierce debate in various state legislatures across the United States.