Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, November 3, 1994 TAG: 9411030116
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Providing tax credits for children to attend private or parochial schools would take away badly needed funds from public schools and lower the educational quality for disadvantaged students, several parents and educators said.
But others disagreed sharply and contended that vouchers would create competition for public schools and make them better. They said that some middle- and upper-class families are paying for the education of their children twice - they pay taxes, plus tuition at private schools.
The strong feelings over the voucher issue surfaced at an town meeting on education held by Gov. George Allen's Commission on Champion Schools.
Allen has asked the commission to study vouchers and charter schools as ways to provide choices for parents who want educational options. School choice is expected to be a centerpiece in the commission's recommendations that will be given to Allen next month.
Linda Wyatt, a Roanoke teacher and City Council member, said she has no problem with school choice in public schools such as Roanoke's magnet schools. But she said she opposes vouchers to help pay for sending children to private schools.
Wyatt said the concept sounds laudable, but it amounts to a subsidy for rich people to send their children to private schools. Even with a voucher, low-income families can't afford to send their children to private schools, she said.
Robert Rouse, a candidate for the Roanoke County School Board, said many families are worried that the quality of public schools will suffer if the state approves vouchers and tuition tax credits.
"It is a scary thing for some families," he said.
Sentiment on the issue seemed to be about evenly divided, with supporters complaining that public schools are almost a monopoly and that only the rich can afford private schools.
Another form of school choice, charter schools, received less attention, but they are being considered by the commission. Charter schools would be supported by taxpayers, but they would be exempt from many regulations imposed on other public schools. Different states have organized them differently.
One teacher said charter schools can complement other public schools, but funding for them must not be diverted from others schools and safeguards will be needed to protect the salaries, benefits and other finances for the teachers.
Before the Wednesday night meeting at Cave Spring High School, the commission spent the day visiting several schools in the Roanoke Valley. Members toured William Fleming High School and William Ruffner Middle School. They also visited Glen Cove Elementary School in Roanoke County.
The commission also visited Salem High School, where a rigorous college-preparatory program in use is the best of its kind in the country, a Virginia Tech professor said.
The International Baccalaureate program provides a comprehensive plan of study that prepares students for the best colleges and universities nationwide, said Gene Carson.
"It teaches students how to think critically - and prepares them for the stress of a heavy work load in college," said Carson, an international examiner for the IB program.
Carson joined more than a dozen Salem students to explain the preparatory program to the commission members.
Betsy McClearn, coordinator for the preparatory program, said the commission wanted information and the students were the best source of it.
The students, current and former participants in the program, were the teachers, and the commission members were the students.
Salem is one of a handful of school systems in Virginia with the international preparatory program. Roanoke has applied to admit William Fleming High School into the program, a process that takes several years.
Worldwide, about 20,000 students are enrolled in the program, which was started by the International School, a private school in Geneva, in the 1960s. It prepares students of many nationalities for advanced credits in colleges and universities.
Matt Hatfield, a Salem High graduate who now is in the honors program at Virginia Tech, said the baccalaureate program taught him critical thinking and writing skills. He said he also learned how to manage his time better.
A high standard of academic excellence, including programs for advanced and gifted children, is among the issues the commission is studying.
The 48-member commission is also studying funding, drugs, violence, safety, educational technology, parental involvement and the use of achievement testing for accountability.
Other issues being considered by the commission are the need for more school nurses, local control of the school calendar and more involvement by parents in school operations.
Last May, Allen appointed the commission and asked it to develop a comprehensive reform plan for elementary and secondary education in Virginia.
The commission will make recommendations to Allen next month in time for the next General Assembly session.
The strike force has recommended tuition tax credits, a longer school day, elimination of promoting children to the next grade for social reasons, increasing programs for at-risk children and other changes.
by CNB