No quick fix

Editorial

Arizonans, like other Americans, know well the poor state of public education. Classes are overcrowded. Teachers are underpaid. Students are performing disappointingly on proficiency tests. Dropout rates are high.

A frequently considered way for students to circumvent struggling school systems across the country is to use government vouchers to help offset the cost of private education. This idea is problematic on many levels, including divesting money from already underfunded public schools.

In Arizona, vouchers appear to be an unlikely possibility, as the establishment clause of the state constitution is more stringent than the U.S. Constitution and forbids the use of public money for private or religious schools.

Another option is for parents to avoid the public school system by sending their children to the private school of their choice, including Jewish day schools.

This option is made possible in Arizona, in part, through "tuition tax credit" contributions to Student Tuition Organizations. These voluntary contributions represent a dollar-for-dollar tax credit and provide scholarships to students in need.

The STO model is a mixed blessing. Its scholarships provide the opportunity for more families - despite financial constraints - to send their children to quality private schools, including Jewish day schools.

But STOs narrow the separation between church and state by diverting desperately needed money from public education coffers to private religious schools.

A similar tax credit mechanism benefits public schools without violating the church/state divide. The Arizona public school tax credit enables taxpayers to make contributions to their public school of choice.

Vouchers and tax credits notwithstanding, the best way to improve public school education is through citizen vigilance and participation. We can pay careful attention to who we elect to our school boards. We can attend meetings and voice our concerns and expectations for our children.

We also can ask our Arizona congressmen why they are devoting their limited time and resources to promote vouchers in the Washington, D.C., school system (see related story, "AZ reps back D.C. vouchers," on Page 1) instead of addressing the critical needs and concerns of their constituency.

Only through concerted efforts can we ensure that public school education will remain the bedrock of our democracy, where students mingle with peers of all races, religions and ethnicities.

The quality of public school education should not be limited by whether a school is in the inner city or the suburbs, but only by our students' discipline and determination.

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