Could Gray Vouch for Vouchers?

Chavous hints at "true revolution" in education

By P.J. ORVETTI

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If Vincent Gray really wants to continue reforming D.C.’s public schools, but in a more conciliatory way than that taken by Adrian Fenty and Michelle Rhee, a good start would be to push for a revival of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program.

The experimental federal program, which provided vouchers of up to $7,500 to low-income children to attend private schools, was cut off by President Obama early in his term. While the Obama Administration agreed to let students who were already taking advantage of the program continue getting the aid until they finished high school, scholarships that had already been promised to 216 students were rescinded.

A federally mandated evaluation indicated that the use of an Opportunity Scholarship resulted in the equivalent of more than three and a half extra months of learning in terms of measurable progress. Surveys showed that a clear majority of D.C. residents supported the continuation of the program. But because of Obama’s decision, those 216 students, and those who might have followed them into future Opportunity Scholarships, will have to stay in a school system where nearly two-thirds of fourth graders cannot read at a basic level.

Perhaps alluding to the startling fact that nearly a thousand incidents of violent crime were reported in D.C. public schools during one recent school year, federal Education Secretary Arne Duncan said late last year that Opportunity Scholarship students “were safe, and learning and doing well.” An endorsement of the program? Well, no. “We can’t be satisfied with saving 1 or 2 percent of children and letting 98 or 99 percent down.”

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