DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Every Iowa student would have the choice of using greater than $7,500 in state money annually to pay for personal school under a proposal Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds proposed Tuesday night within the annual Condition of the State speech.
Reynolds, a Republican, has tried unsuccessfully twice before to enact a less expansive program of taxpayer-funded scholarships for personal school. Nonetheless, her more far-reaching program this 12 months could finally be approved due to larger Republican majorities in each the House and Senate.
She outlined the private school scholarships proposal during a speech during which she also called for a latest effort to enhance reading in poor-performing schools, supported offering grants to encourage fathers to be involved of their kid’s lives, proposed programs to learn rural health care and sought to limit awards given in lawsuits against health care systems.
In describing her private school scholarship program, Reynolds said she supported public schools but thought all children, not only those from wealthy families, must have the flexibility to attend private schools. The $7,598 she proposes making available to every student — the identical amount the state allocates for a toddler in public schools — would initially be focused on lower-income children who need to attend a non-public school but after three years it will be available no matter income.
“Some families might want an education that conforms to their faith and moral convictions. Some kids can have ambitions and skills that require a novel educational setting. Others may experience bullying or have special needs,” Reynolds said. “No matter the explanation, every parent must have a selection of where to send their child, and that selection shouldn’t be limited to families who can afford it.”
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Repeatedly, Reynolds said, her political opponents, the media and “so-called experts” predicted catastrophe if such proposals were approved, but she argued the state had emerged stronger due to those actions.
“The pundits said we were improper, the experts condemned us, and so they underestimated our resolve,” Reynolds said. “But none of that matters. It doesn’t matter since the people of Iowa were with us.”
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