Institute in the Tribune: A Worthy Education

An op-ed from James Meeks and Andy McKenna cites research from the Illinois Policy Institute.

By James Meeks and Andy McKenna Jr.

Because of irresponsible leadership, Illinois is running out of money. Still, the educational mission of state government is critical to our future. As U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan has said, education is the “civil rights issue of our generation.” These two realities confront us with a simple demand: We must spend money much more effectively.

Each day, this imperative becomes clear to more and more people. It is the reason Democrats and Republicans are joining together to support Senate Bill 2494, the Illinois School Choice Act. They believe it is one way to spend our money more effectively.

The bill offers vouchers to families with children enrolled in Chicago’s worst performing elementary schools, defined as the bottom 10 percent, so they can take their children out of these schools and send them to a nearby private school. The amount of each voucher is the lesser of the state’s “foundation level” funding (currently, $6,119) or yearly tuition at the private school. (The average private elementary school tuition in Chicago is less than $4,500).

This approach saves money. According to the Illinois Policy Institute’s analysis, the state would save $19 million over five years, if about half the students eligible for vouchers request them, and more than $182 million over 12 years. These resources could be reinvested in public education or used to address many of the state’s other financial woes.

Read the rest of the article here.

James Meeks is a minister and Democratic state senator from Chicago. Andy McKenna Jr. is a businessman and former chairman of the Illinois Republican Party.