Huge victory for AIM in Ohio
July 5, 2023
Due in large part to Accuracy in Media’s investigations into multiple school districts across the state of Ohio, the state passed a tremendous expansion of Ohio’s school voucher program.
The expansion is part of the 2024-2025 budget, which was signed into law by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine early Tuesday morning.
In late May, the implementation of universal school choice was estimated to cost the state more than $1 billion, according to NBC 4 in Columbus. The budget provided $2 billion for the voucher program and will “exponentially” increase the number of students eligible to attend private school on a voucher, according to the Springfield News-Sun. The News-Sun reports:
“Now, students whose family make up to 450% of the poverty line — $135,000 for a family of four — can get a full voucher under income guidelines. Previous income guidelines included anyone who made up to 250% of the poverty line.
“Above the 450% level, students can receive a percentage of the full scholarship, prorated based on their family’s income. The minimum percentage a student can get is 10% of the scholarships.
“The amount of money a student can receive in a voucher also rose by 12%, the same percent increase given to traditional public schools. High school students can now get up to $8,407, and kindergarten through eighth grade students can get up to $6,165.”
The AIM investigation repeatedly revealed that school administrators in Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, and beyond, were willing and prepared to skirt possible laws that would ban Critical Race Theory, and to deceive parents about what they were doing.
Again and again, they demonstrated the importance of adopting Arizona-style school choice, where the money follows the child. No matter the legislation, teachers and school administrators will teach what they want, regardless of the wishes of their students’ parents. This expansion of school choice in Ohio allows those parents to get the best education possible for their children, and to show school administrators that they don’t call all the shots.
Families across the country deserve school choice. With one click, send a message to your elected officials telling them to promote school choice in your state.