In this book, scholars and national experts untangle this complex story to show how law and policy have aligned to dramatically alter the likely future of American schooling. They offer recommendations for modifying current policies with the goal of capturing more of the originally stated vision of voucher programs—equitable access to quality schooling, protection of all students’ civil rights, and advancement of the wider societal goals of a democratic educational system.
Book Features:
- Shows how a fast-growing policy is transforming education in the United States in ways that are very different from how that policy was sold to the public.
- Sets the stage with a discussion of the history and legal dimensions of voucher battles, as well as the politics of policy change.
- Examines the basic structure of contemporary private schooling, the Southern history of vouchers, and the key federal court decisions that have opened the door to an explosion of state legislation.
- Offers profiles of voucher policies in two states that have made the largest efforts to support vouchers, as well as the only nationally funded program in the nation’s capital.
- Edited by three scholars with extensive experience in the study of school choice, with chapters by national experts who have produced seminal work in the field.
The Public Funds Public Schools (PFPS) webinar series featured a conversation with the editors of the book. You can access a recording of the webinar here.
Professor Janel George of Georgetown Law moderated the discussion with the book’s editors: Gary Orfield, Distinguished Research Professor at UCLA and Co-Director of the Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles; Kevin Welner, Professor at the University of Colorado Boulder School of Education and Director of the National Education Policy Center; and Luis A. Huerta, Professor of Education and Public Policy at Teachers College, Columbia University and Chair of the Education Policy and Social Analysis Department.
Receive a discount when you order the book from Teacher’s College Press and use code PFPS for 15% off plus free shipping on The School Voucher Illusion.
