Guest guest Posted January 5, 2006 Report Share Posted January 5, 2006 January 5, 2006 3:56 PM FLORIDA SUPREME COURT NIXES FLORIDA VOUCHER PROGRAM From the New York Times story In a ruling expected to reverberate through legal battles over school choice in many states, the Florida Supreme Court today struck down a voucher program for students attending failing schools, saying the state constitution bars Florida from using taxpayer money to finance a private alternative to the public system. The 5-to-2 ruling will shut down a program that Gov. Jeb Bush has considered one of his chief accomplishments at the close of this school year.... ....The United States Supreme Court has ruled that the federal Constitution does not prohibit vouchers. But it also held last year that states were not obliged to finance religious education as well as secular education, a ruling that left state courts to decide whether voucher programs are legal and focused national attention on the battle over Florida's voucher program, which the teachers union first challenged in 1999. ã Copyright January 5, 2006 by Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2006 Report Share Posted January 5, 2006 For Immediate Release January 5, 2006 FLORIDA SUPREME COURT DECISION ON SCHOLARSHIPS FLAWED Washington, D.C. – The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday declared that the state's school choice program violates the constitution's requirement of a uniform system of free public schools, a move being viewed by many as both political and divisive. The Opportunity Scholarship Program, part of a larger accountability program enacted in 2000 which gave children in failing schools the choice to attend private schools or better performing public schools, was struck down on party-lines in a 5-2 opinion. " This decision does not mean Florida's Opportunity Scholarships are not right, " said CER President Jeanne . " It just means that this court, at this time, wasn't able to justify them under the Constitution. " In a statement, argued that the decision is an anomaly in Florida, and has no repercussions for other states. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled an Ohio scholarship program constitutional in 2002. also provided data about the positive impact of Opportunity Scholarships on student achievement. Students at schools that had failed two years in a row had significant learning gains, a response to the possibility of schools losing students to the opportunity scholarship program. Scholars have also found dramatic learning gains among the 701 students enrolled in 47 schools through the program. " This is a blow for the kids of Florida and a challenge for policy makers, " said , " but not one that cannot be overcome. " ### CER, the leading national organization for necessary structural change in American education, joined an amicus brief in support of the program. > > January 5, 2006 3:56 PM > FLORIDA SUPREME COURT NIXES FLORIDA VOUCHER PROGRAM > > From the New York Times story > > In a ruling expected to reverberate through legal battles over > school choice > in many states, the Florida Supreme Court today struck down a voucher > program for students attending failing schools, saying the state > constitution bars Florida from using taxpayer money to finance a > private > alternative to the public system. > > The 5-to-2 ruling will shut down a program that Gov. Jeb Bush has > considered > one of his chief accomplishments at the close of this school year.... > > ...The United States Supreme Court has ruled that the federal > Constitution > does not prohibit vouchers. But it also held last year that states > were not > obliged to finance religious education as well as secular education, a > ruling that left state courts to decide whether voucher programs > are legal > and focused national attention on the battle over Florida's voucher > program, > which the teachers union first challenged in 1999. > > ã Copyright January 5, 2006 by Harvey Kronberg, > www.quorumreport.com, All > rights are reserved > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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