- IN THIS REPORT
Readers will read about election results, some Blum Center developments, and an Editor's View on Violence in the Public Schools.
TODAY
THE POLITICAL WORLD IS SAFER FOR SCHOOL CHOICE
The Editor has written much about the need for school
choice workers in the various states to help create a countervailing power
to offset the entrenched and self-interested defenders of educational finance
monopoly (EFM). EFM's long-standing accumulation of staff, finances, and
linkage to state legislative and executive power means that advocates of
parental freedom need to break the grip of such controls, and make school
choice both safe for and attractive to state politicians.
What was the general impact of the November 8 elections as regards breaking the control of EFM, making school choice safe for politicians, and gaining momentum for that parent-serving and justice-serving policy? As the following descriptions will make plain, school choice and America's parents were huge winners on November 8. There are now sitting governors in more states than ever who are on record in support of school choice and parental freedom, as contrasted with EFM's humanly destructive status quo. Victory for such candidates establishes this liberating fact: EFM's bureaucratic and union grasp on state power can be broken. There are now unprecedented numbers of state-level decision-makers, executive and legislative, who owe nothing to EFM's defenders except, perhaps, a figurative back-of-the-hand.
These are facts. They are potent facts. They are not, however, victory for school choice. But that victory can be much more easily achieved after and because of the November 8 elections. This represents great progress and genuine momentum built up in recent years in many states. If only a few of those states grant parents' rights to school choice, the snowball will be started down the hill. Parents in neighboring states can be expected to demand the freedom their neighbors will then have. Space will not permit a comprehensive picture of November 8 results pertinent to school choice, but some of the highlights follow.
ARIZONA
The environment for educational choice in Arizona improved
dramatically with two key November 8 election victories. Governor Fife
Symington gained 52% of the vote in defeating his Democratic challenger,
Eddie Basha, who gained 44% of votes cast. (New York Times, 11/10/94)
Mr. Basha took a position of steadfast opposition to comprehensive choice
in education during his campaign. (Arizona Daily Star, 08/21/94)
Governor Symington, by contrast, is a long-time advocate of school choice
via education vouchers and of charter schools. (See Freedom Reports
#8 & 11.) When Doug Cole, a spokesman for Governor Symington, was asked
whether the Governor would continue to advocate comprehensive educational
choice during the 1995 legislative session, he responded, "Absolutely.
When the governor is re-elected, he will push for vouchers." (Arizona
Republic, 10/19/94)
In the contest for state Superintendent of Public Instruction, Arizona voters overwhelmingly preferred state Representative Lisa Graham to state Senator Lela Alston. In a race considered by many to be a referendum on educational choice, Lisa Graham, an ardent advocate of comprehensive choice, won 62% of the vote, while Lela Alston who strongly opposes choice gained 38%. (PR Newswire, 11/09/94) A headline in the Phoenix Gazette (11/09/94) declared, "Graham: Win is a Mandate for Vouchers." Indeed, the candidates' striking differences regarding education vouchers became the most significant and widely-publicized issue in the race, presenting voters with a clear choice. Ms. Graham, who serves as chair of the House Education Committee, was a principal sponsor of last spring's narrowly-defeated education voucher proposal and of last June's successful bill authorizing the creation of charter schools.
CONNECTICUT
Amidst a crowded field of gubernatorial candidates, Republican
John Rowland emerged the victor with 36% of the total vote. The Democratic
candidate, Bill Curry, placed second with 33%. The remaining 31% was split
between two independent candidates. (New York Times, 11/10/94) Mr.
Rowland will replace Connecticut's retiring Governor Lowell Weicker. During
the campaign, both Mr. Rowland and Mr. Curry said they favor the idea of
public school choice. Mr. Curry, however, said he would oppose including
private schools in an educational choice program; whereas Mr. Rowland,
by contrast, stated that he supports the idea of giving families an opportunity
to choose private schools for their children. (Hartford Courant,
09/22/94)
Mr. Rowland's victory is a significant one for Connecticut advocates of school choice. Last spring, a comprehensive choice proposal nearly passed in the state House of Representatives, only to fall one vote short. (See Freedom Report #9.) Governor Weicker's promise to veto the proposal if it had passed certainly contributed to its defeat. It is likely that a similar bill will be introduced next year, however, and its odds of passing will be improved with Mr. Rowland serving as Governor. Also, several additional school choice supporters won election to the state legislature, while none of those who voted for last year's proposal lost their seats in the November 8 election. (Information provided by Matt Boyle, Conn. Federation of Catholic School Parents.)
FLORIDA
Jeb Bush, Florida's Republican gubernatorial candidate
and a strong supporter of full choice in education, narrowly lost to incumbent
Governor Lawton Chiles. The margin of victory for Governor Chiles was less
than 100,000 votes. He gained 51% of the total vote to Mr. Bush's 49%.
(New York Times, 11/10/94) Jeb Bush had included school choice as
a major plank in his campaign platform and had selected state Representative
Tom Feeney, a well known advocate of comprehensive choice in education,
to be his running mate for the post of Lieutenant Governor. (See Freedom
Report #13.)
Despite Jeb Bush's narrow defeat, Florida supporters of school choice can take heart in Frank Brogan's victory in the race for state Commissioner of Education. Mr. Brogan, an advocate of comprehensive choice, defeated incumbent Commissioner Doug Jamerson, an opponent of full choice, by a margin of 53% to 47%. Mr. Brogan favors allowing local school districts the option of implementing educational choice programs. (St. Petersburg Times, 11/09/94; Florida Legislative Reporters, Inc., 11/09/94)
IDAHO
In the race for state Superintendent of Education, Republican
Anne Fox received 57% of the votes cast while defeating Democrat Willie
Sullivan who gained 43% of the vote. (PR Newswire, 11/09/94) Mr.
Sullivan, who previously served as president of the state's teachers' union,
the Idaho Education Association, opposes comprehensive school choice. Ms.
Fox is a supporter of school choice via education vouchers. (Education
Week, 10/19/94)
MARYLAND
At the writing of this report, the Maryland Governor's
race remains undecided in one of the closest gubernatorial elections in
state history. Democrat Parris Glendening and Republican Ellen Sauerbrey
are virtually deadlocked, each having won approximately 50% of the vote.
At the conclusion of the November 8 polling, Mr. Glendening enjoyed a razor-thin
advantage of 6,187 votes. Absentee ballots must now be counted to determine
the victor. More than 40,000 absentee ballots have been returned to election
officials and the closely supervised counting of them began on November
9. (New York Times, 11/11/94)
Ms. Sauerbrey, Maryland's House Republican Leader, strongly endorsed full parental choice in education throughout her campaign. She advocates charter schools, parental choice of public schools and an education scholarship program which would allow families to use state-funded scholarships to enroll their children in accredited private schools. (See Freedom Report #13.)
However the Maryland election turns out, Ms. Sauerbrey's considerable success can only be regarded as quite remarkable. Democrats in the state claim a two to one advantage over Republicans in registered voters; and Mr. Glendening outspent the Sauerbrey campaign by a six to one margin. (Baltimore Morning Sun, 11/10/94)
OHIO
Breaking the state's record for margin of victory in
a gubernatorial contest, incumbent Governor George Voinovich overwhelmed
his Democratic opponent, Robert Burch, in the November 8 election. Gov.
Voinovich gained 72% of the votes cast to Mr. Burch's 25%. (Cleveland
Plain Dealer, 11/09/94; New York Times, 11/10/94) Gov. Voinovich
is a supporter of full parental choice in education and had earlier established
a commission to explore educational choice options. From that commission
came the Ohio Scholarship Plan, a proposal to allow a limited number of
school districts in the state to implement pilot school choice programs.
The proposal, backed by the Governor, was introduced in the state legislature;
but the effort eventually failed after House leadership assigned the bill
to a then-hostile Education Committee. (See Freedom Report #3.)
The recent general election in Ohio brought not only a victory for the
Governor, however, it resulted also in Republican control of both the state's
House and Senate. School choice advocates in Ohio anticipate that the Ohio
Scholarship Plan will be reintroduced in the state legislature next year
and that Gov. Voinovich will make provisions for the plan in his forthcoming
executive budget. With committee chairmanships now controlled by members
of the Governor's own party, the Ohio Scholarship Plan's chances have improved
considerably. (Information provided by Mary Ann Jackson, Hope for Ohio's
Children.)
PENNSYLVANIA
Republican Congressman and school choice advocate Tom
Ridge will become the next Governor of Pennsylvania. In the November 8
election, Mr. Ridge decisively defeated the Democratic candidate and current
Lieutenant Governor, Mark Singel, by more than 200,000 votes, and he did
so despite the fact that there are 500,000 more registered Democratic than
Republican voters in the state. He also defeated independent candidate
Peg Luksik whose strong support for parental rights and educational choice
via tax credits likely drew a good number of votes away from Mr.
Ridge. Final tallies show that Tom Ridge won 45% of votes cast, while Mark
Singel and Peg Luksik gained 40% and 13%, respectively. (Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette, 11/06/94; New York Times, 11/10/94)
Both Mr. Ridge and Mr. Singel advocated charter schools and choice within the public school system during their campaigns. But while Mr. Singel stated that he would staunchly oppose any school choice proposal that included private schools among the options available to families, Mr. Ridge made comprehensive choice in education a major theme in his campaign and declared that he "will work to give parents the right to choose the school their child attends, including private and religious schools." (Philadelphia Inquirer, 10/27/94) Mr. Ridge proposes that education voucher programs be established initially in the neediest parts of the state. Mr. Singel's firm opposition to comprehensive choice gained him the endorsements of the state's public school teachers' unions, the Pennsylvania State Education Association and the Pennsylvania Federation of Teachers, both of which contributed huge sums of money to his campaign. Mr. Ridge, on the other hand, received the endorsement of Pennsylvania's REACH (Road to Educational Achievement through Choice) Political Action Committee. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 10/27/94; Harrisburg Patriot News, 10/02/94)
WISCONSIN
Seeking a third term as Governor, Republican Tommy Thompson
easily defeated his Democratic opponent, state Senator Chuck Chvala. Gov.
Thompson won 67% of the total vote. (Milwaukee Journal, 11/09/94)
Gov. Thompson, a well-known supporter of educational choice, signed into
law the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, the program championed by Democratic
state Rep. Annette "Polly" Williams. As in Ohio, Thompson's landslide victory
was accompanied by State Republican legislators winning control of both
the Assembly and the Senate. Gov. Thompson can anticipate greater cooperation
from a legislature controlled by those more sympathetic to his agenda.
The election results prompted a teachers' union official to remark, "Given
the new political realities, it's even more important the MTEA (Milwaukee
Teachers' Education Association) moves swiftly to embrace reform and pushes
its members to do likewise." (Milwaukee Journal, 11/10/94)
New Blum Center Pamphlet
Educational finance monopoly (EFM) exacts its awful prices
in many ways, as Freedom Report readers know. One of the worst of
these costs is in its contribution to ethical relativism and family strain.
The attached new pamphlet, "Ethics in a Pluralistic Society: The Need for
School Choice," examines this crucial issue.
What it shows is that EFM's damage to ethical vitality and family integrity results ultimately not from "bad guys" with evil intentions, but from normal people following the logic of humanly destructive policies and the social structures they have spawned.
New Blum Center Video Tape
In 1980, the Catholic League produced a magnificent,
award-winning film depicting a "Miracle in the Inner City" — the miracle
of excellent education, achieved against high odds. The miracle was occurring
in independent schools, chosen by parents out of concern for their children,
and at sacrifice to themselves.
That film was made available to the Blum Center, and we have adapted it to tape. In doing so, we have also situated it in the current struggle for parental freedom and school choice. "Miracle" provides stunning testimony to the great educational and family good which flows from the act of choosing a school. We hope it can be of benefit to school choice advocates across the country, as an aid to them in telling their vital story.
The re-presented tape, now entitled "The 'Moral Contracts' of School Choice: Miracle in the Inner City," is 33 minutes in length, and can be ordered from the Blum Center for $9.00, prepaid. That covers cost of production, shipping, and handling.
Recent Acquisition
The Choice-in-Education League of Minnesota, under the
direction of Eugene Piccolo, has recently produced a new video, "Parental
Rights. . .Equity in Education." It is very well done, and we recommend
it to any readers who can be assisted by videotape presentation. Though
designed directly to help achieve school choice in Minnesota, "Parental
Rights. . ." can work effectively in any jurisdiction. Among its virtues
is
a series of very cogent responses to the major smoke screens which are used to obstruct school choice. "Parental Rights. . ." can be purchased for $19.95 plus shipping and handling, by contacting Mr. Piccolo at the Choice-in-Education League of Minnesota, 475 University Avenue West, St. Paul, Minnesota 55103-1996, (612) 227-9773, FAX (612) 227-2675.
- How sad it was to read the headlines of November 2, 1994,
describing the National League of Cities' new report on violence in the
public schools. According to that report, levels of violence are up dramatically
in those schools over the last five years. The worst such increases are
in the big cities, and in those suffering communities, it is reported,
40% of the schools experienced the killing or serious injury of at least
one child in the last year. (Milwaukee Sentinel, 11-2-94)
In Freedom Report #6, February 18, 1994, we noted
Ambassador Walter Annenberg's $500,000,000 gift to public schools. According
to press reports, it had been precipitated substantially by his concern
for safety in those schools, especially in the major cities. We described
the grant's implicit question: "What can be done to promote safety and
a more tranquil environment in the public schools?" And we went on to say:
The pertinence and power of these better questions stems from a pertinent and powerful fact: America's private schools, even in the most depressed inner-city areas, already know how to maintain a peaceful educational habitat. It is characteristic of a place with clearly-established principles and freely-established moral 'contracts' binding together school leaders, teachers, students, and parents. Under a genuine choice system, public schools no less than private ones would have the advantage of such an environment, for they, too, would be chosen, not imposed.
To ask simply how we might improve conditions in the public
schools is to be a captive of that system. To ask, instead, of parents'
reaction to unsafe schools if parents were free to choose is to submit
all schools (the means) to the test of excellent performance (the end).
Is it not probable that the customary safety and tranquillity of independently chosen schools stems primarily from such parental and student commitment, and the natural docility and positive perspective which flow from it? Is that not the likely explanation why chosen schools are safe, by any comparative standard, no matter how tumultuous may be their surroundings? And, in the disastrous conditions described by the National League of Cities' report, is this not another overwhelming argument for school choice without financial penalty? n
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The Blum Center grants full permission for all of its documents to be copied, in part or in whole, to extend the reach of the Center's messages and information. We appreciate it when our readers keep us apprised of state and national developments in the area of school choice, particularly legislative developments. Any Blum Center documents not available on our web page may be obtained by contacting us by telephone, fax, or mail. Virgil C. Blum Center for Parental Freedom in Education |
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