For Immediate Release:
February 14, 2007 Contact: Susan Martin, Press Office
415-955-6120 or smartin@pacificresearch.org SAN FRANCISCO - On February, 12, 2007, Utah Governor John Huntsman, Jr., signed the country’s first universal school choice voucher program into law. The Parent Choice in Education Act makes every Utah public school student eligible for a voucher worth $500 to $3,000 depending on family income. Students entering kindergarten and private school students from low-income families are also eligible. “This program is a victory for students in Utah and brings hope to students across the country,” said Lance T. Izumi, director of Education Studies. “Most California families have no options other than public schools that leave more than half of students below proficiency in English and math—despite spending in excess of $11,000 per pupil. Utah families don’t have to tolerate such failure any more. Why should California families?” Dr. Vicki Murray, PRI senior fellow in Education Studies, said “Utah Republican Governor Hunstman isn’t the only one supporting school choice. California Democratic Senator Diane Feinstein voted for the Washington, D.C., school voucher program. Democratic governors of Iowa, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin all expanded school choice last year, along with Arizona Democratic Governor Janet Napolitano, who also signed two new targeted school voucher programs into law.” School Vouchers the Legacy of Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman
Milton Friedman, who passed away last year, first recommended the idea of school vouchers in 1955. He suggested letting parents pick their children’s schools just like college students do under the G.I. Bill and Pell Grant programs. Today targeted student populations across the country, including special needs and low-income students, benefit from more than 70 privately-funded voucher programs, as well as 20 publicly-supported voucher and other school choice programs in 11 states and Washington, D.C. And, school choice legislation has already been filed in 17 states so far this year. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently proclaimed January 29 “Milton Friedman Day to honor the man he considers a personal hero. “Milton Friedman was a Californian, by choice, and it would be a tribute to this great man if his friend, Gov. Schwarzenegger, and all California leaders who want to provide a better education to our children, would honor his memory by championing Friedman’s best-loved cause: school choice,” said Mr. Izumi.
### About PRI
For 28 years, the Pacific Research Institute (PRI) has championed freedom, opportunity, and individual responsibility through free-market policy solutions. PRI is a non-profit, non-partisan organization. For more information please visit our web site at http://www.pacificresearch.org/ |
