{"id":2337788,"date":"2024-09-06T10:50:02","date_gmt":"2024-09-06T14:50:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/eliminating-school-choice-waiting-list-of-55000-appears-imminent-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-09-06T10:54:53","modified_gmt":"2024-09-06T14:54:53","slug":"eliminating-school-choice-waiting-list-of-55000-appears-imminent-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/eliminating-school-choice-waiting-list-of-55000-appears-imminent-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Eliminating school choice waiting list of 55,000 appears imminent &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Feliminating-school-choice-waiting-list-of-55000-appears-imminent-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2337788&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>In North Carolina, discussions are heating up around\u200b a potential legislative move by Republican lawmakers to eliminate \u2062a waiting list of 55,000 children for Opportunity Scholarships, which <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rep-donalds-speaks-out-against-democrats\/\" title=\"Rep. Donalds speaks out against Democrats\">support school choice<\/a>. This initiative has been met with opposition\u200d from Democrats, including Governor Roy Cooper, who argues that funding the \u200bscholarships could divert nearly $100 million\u200d from public schools in \u200cthe \u2064first\u2062 year. \u200dThe governor criticized the proposal \u200das a mechanism to funnel taxpayer money into \u2063<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fla-passes-private-school-vouchers-for-those-against-mask-mandates\/\" title=\"Fla. passes private school vouchers for those against mask mandates\">private school vouchers<\/a>, which he believes would harm public education. In contrast,\u200d the state recently enacted universal school choice,\u200d reflecting growing popularity\u200b among families, with approximately 10%\u200b of students opting for alternatives to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scalise-races-to-shore-up-support-for-speakership-ahead-of-floor-vote\/\" title=\"Scalise rushes to secure backing for Speakership before floor vote.\">traditional\u200d public schools<\/a> \u2062in the past 15 years. The legislature is set to\u2063 reconvene to discuss these matters, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/special-counsel-david-weiss-unveils-hunter-biden-laptop-evidence-in-gun-case\/\" title=\"David Weiss, special counsel, presents Hunter Biden laptop evidence in firearm case\">amidst \u200dongoing debates<\/a> about the future of education\u2063 funding\u2063 in North Carolina.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Eliminating school choice waiting list of 55,000 appears imminent<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1748874\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square) &ndash; Preemptively speaking, North Carolina Democrats led by the governor on Thursday condemned the possibility Republicans will move legislation forward next week to provide enough funding to extinguish the waiting list for Opportunity Scholarships.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The Legislature convenes Monday, at noon for both the Senate and House of Representatives. Sen. Dan Blue, D-Wake, and Rep. Robert Reives, D-Chatham, are respective minority party leaders and say they&rsquo;ve not been told of voting matters.<\/p>\n<p>A published report Thursday said a bill to be brought forward would end the school choice waiting list and have a provision for requirement by sheriffs to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Each has been a Republican priority that failed to get across the finish line.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/north_carolina\/article_30e38a40-b715-11ee-bf22-47620f55f407.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Universal school choice<\/strong><\/a>&nbsp;became the law in the state last summer. Popularity with families was evident immediately, and lawmakers have tried to find funding to eliminate the 55,000 children on the waiting list.<\/p>\n<p>Gov. Roy Cooper said such a move could drain nearly $100 million in state funding from public schools in the first year of the expansion<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Republican legislators are returning to Raleigh to siphon hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars out of public schools and give it to the wealthy through private school vouchers,&rdquo; the governor said. &ldquo;This would be disastrous for our public schools and the future of our state. They should invest in public education instead so we can give teachers an overdue pay raise.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The state has an estimated 1.8 million students with just under 1.4 million enrolled in traditional public schools.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/north_carolina\/article_2d104b98-32f8-11ee-bea5-a3c85fc3de55.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Enrollment trends show<\/strong><\/a>&nbsp;about 10% of students have shifted from traditional public schools to alternative options over the last 15 years.<\/p>\n<p>At $17.9 billion, more than half of this year&rsquo;s state budget is being spent on education.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;More than one-quarter of North Carolina&rsquo;s counties &ndash; all rural counties &ndash; have no or just one private school participating in the voucher program,&rdquo; Cooper said. &ldquo;By diverting public funds to wealthier urban areas, private school vouchers are deepening the resource gap and undermining the educational opportunities for rural students.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Cooper said Republicans&rsquo; plan equates to $625 million in new funding in 2024-25.<\/p>\n<p>Republican legislative leaders have not yet announced their plans on legislation to expand voucher funding in the upcoming session.<\/p>\n<p>Caitlin Lee, director of policy and implementation for EdChoice, a national organization that supports vouchers, said&nbsp;the proposed expanded funding could be limited to special needs students.<\/p>\n<p>Special needs students often attend schools that are &ldquo;incredibly expensive,&rdquo; Lee told The Center Square.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Often times, students who have special needs require more than just classroom instruction, they require therapies &ndash; occupational therapies, speech therapies,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;It goes beyond the classroom instruction time.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1748874\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1748874\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The removal of the 55,000-student waiting list for school choice seems likely to happen soon (The Center Square) \u2013 On Thursday, North Carolina Democrats, led by the governor, criticized the potential for Republicans to advance legislation next week that would allocate sufficient funding to eliminate the waiting list for Opportunity Scholarships. The Legislature is set to meet on Monday at noon for both the Senate and House of Representatives. Sen. Dan Blue, D-Wake, and Rep. Robert Reives, D-Chatham\u2014leaders of the minority party\u2014indicated they have not been informed about any voting issues. A report released on Thursday suggested that a bill aimed at ending the school choice waiting list would also include a requirement for sheriffs to collaborate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Both initiatives have been priorities for Republicans but have previously failed to pass. Universal school choice was enacted in North Carolina last summer and quickly gained popularity among families; lawmakers are now seeking funding solutions to address the 55,000 children awaiting scholarships. Governor Roy Cooper warned that this initiative could divert nearly $100 million from public schools in its first year of implementation: \u201cRepublican legislators are returning to Raleigh to siphon hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars out of public schools and give it to wealthy individuals through private school vouchers,\u201d he stated. \u201cThis would be disastrous for our public schools and our state&#8217;s future; they should instead invest in public education so we can provide teachers with overdue pay raises.\u201d The state has approximately 1.8 million students enrolled in traditional public schools numbering just under 1.4 million; over the past 15 years, around 10% have transitioned from traditional settings into alternative options. With an education budget exceeding $17.9 billion this year\u2014more than half of total state spending\u2014Cooper noted that more than a quarter of North Carolina&#8217;s counties (all rural) either lack private schools or only have one participating in the voucher program: \u201cBy redirecting public funds towards wealthier urban areas through private school vouchers, we are exacerbating resource disparities and undermining educational opportunities for rural students.\u201d He estimated that Republican plans could lead to an additional $625 million in funding during fiscal year 2024-25; however, Republican legislative leaders have yet to disclose their intentions regarding voucher expansion legislation in this upcoming session.<\/p>\n<p>Caitlin Lee from EdChoice\u2014a national organization advocating for vouchers\u2014mentioned that proposed expanded funding might be restricted solely to special needs students who often attend costly institutions requiring more than just classroom instruction but also various therapies such as occupational or speech therapy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2337789,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/school-classroom.jpg.optimal.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[35136,38091,40290,32076],"class_list":["post-2337788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-education-policy","tag-school-choice","tag-waiting-list","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/school-classroom.jpg.optimal.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2337788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2337788"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2337788\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2337789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2337788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2337788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2337788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}