Hunter Taylor: Voucher program will not support public schools

To The Daily Sun,

A recent letter writer criticized the school voucher program, pointing out that its never-ending expansion will ultimately destroy our public school system. In response Rep. Harry Bean made a remarkable assertion: "I'm looking to better the public schools even if that means creating competition. I feel competition will cut costs and increase productivity." In other words, diverting our tax dollars from our public schools to private and religious schools, according to Rep. Bean's reasoning, will help our local schools. Interestingly, he offers no explanation as to how the competition is going to be helpful to our local schools.

Let's test his argument in a different context: what if Rep. Bean and our county delegation decided to take tax dollars currently available to support our county nursing home and used that money to provide vouchers to people wanting to go to private for-profit nursing homes? Under Rep. Bean's reasoning, cutting the funding for the county nursing home and subsidizing private nursing homes would, that's right, improve the county nursing home.

As a product of public schools, a supporter of our local public schools and a taxpayer, I want my tax dollars to provide a good and free education to all the children. I also support the right of families to opt instead to educate their children at home or at private schools or at religious schools. But it is not their right to have me pay for it.

Let's not pretend to support public schools while undermining them through a runaway voucher program.

Hunter Taylor

Alton