Why does America have school choice deserts despite the policy’s popularity? (The geography of school choice: Part I)
Never in America’s history has school choice been so popular or had so much momentum. However, school choice deserts remain, particularly in the West.
While states like Florida and Iowa have…
Never in America’s history has school choice been so popular or had so much momentum. However, school choice deserts remain, particularly in the West.
While states like Florida and Iowa have implemented robust, sweeping programs, other states haven’t even passed limited ones.
A map of state programs (above), compiled by EdChoice, reveals an interesting trend: The farther west you go, the fewer school choice programs exist to support families.
There are exceptions – Arizona and Utah both have universal programs while a few eastern states, such as New York and Michigan, have nothing.
Additionally, EdChoice doesn’t account for charter schools or open enrollment policies in its map, rather focusing on programs such education savings accounts (ESAs).
But the question remains: why do so many western states lack school choice programs?
To answer that question, this series will explore the cultural, sociological, political and legal obstacles to school choice that western states face.
School choice in America isn’t new
Even though its popularity is skyrocketing, school choice in America isn’t new. In fact, Maine and Vermont have “town tuitioning” programs dating back to the 1800’s.
Town tuitioning programs give vouchers to students whose towns don’t have a public school – vouchers to attend a public school in another district or a private school.
Today, these programs enroll thousands of students.
In the Northwest, a battle for school choice was fought and won in the early 20th century.
Oregon’s Compulsory Education Act of 1922 required students to attend public school – rather than private Catholic institutions – ostensibly to homogenize youth. The Supreme Court unanimously overturned the law in 1925, upholding parents’ rights. The Court had ruled similarly in favor of parents’ rights to direct the upbringing of their own children in a different case two years earlier.
Even the more familiar, modern-day school choice isn’t brand new.
Wisconsin passed a private school voucher program in 1990 for low-income Milwaukee students. A similar program in the city of Racine was started in 2011, with a statewide program following in 2013.
Combined, Wisconsin’s programs serve nearly 50,000 students every year.
While school choice is white hot in popularity following the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s not a product of the pandemic. It’s been around for over 150 years, and the groundwork for its current popularity was laid by decades of education reformers.
So, why hasn’t school choice made it out West?
That’s the question The Lion put to policy experts in multiple states, whose perspectives make up the following five parts of the six-part series.
