The Daily Report Card: Voucher Lawsuits, Reform, Private School Impact
In The Classroom Today
Indiana Judge hears voucher arguments Judge Michael Keele heard arguments today in a lawsuit designed to repeal Indiana’s controversial school choice law. The plaintiffs are led by the Indiana State Teachers Association (ISTA), a chapter of the National Education Association. Meanwhile, the law’s defenders are confident that Indiana’s voucher plan, the largest in the nation, should pass constitutional muster. Indiana Superior Court Judge Michael Keele pictured at right. If the court does affirm the constitutionality of vouchers, the plaintiffs have vowed to appeal. “We’re taking this all the way,” ISTA spokesman Mark Shoup toldChoiceMedia.TV. The lawsuit argues that Indiana’s school choice law violates the state’s constitution on two main grounds: that it fails to provide students with a “common education” and that vouchers inappropriately support private, sectarian institutions with state tax dollars. (watchdog.org)
LETTERS: Dec. 20, 2011 » Opinions » News and Tribune reform (noun) 1: amendment of what is defective, vicious, corrupt or depraved; 2: a removal or correction of an abuse, a wrong or errors Reform is a heavy little word with overtones of ineffectiveness, malfeasance or even sinister background to whatever it is referencing. It is a word to be used judiciously, as telling someone they need reform is hard to do constructively. It requires a great deal of tact, context and evidence that their habits are wrong. Further, there is an implicit judgment that you know and can demonstrate a better way for them to behave. (NewsandTribune.com)
Education Week: Indiana Schools Grapple With Voucher Law’s Impact As the 3,919 students who participated in the first year of Indiana’s new, wide-reaching school voucher program near the end of the first semester in their new schools, the program faces up to its next challenge: A state court hearing opens today on a lawsuit arguing the program violates Indiana’s constitution. (Education Week)