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School Choice Week

Letter to the Editor: This School Choice Week, It’s Time to Prove We Care

It’s been a difficult year for everyone, and many K-12 students across Nebraska have developed gaps in their learning. Now more than ever, parents of all income levels need a wider array of educational options for their children.

Wealthy families can afford tutoring or private school tuition if their children have fallen behind. But most parents are stuck with the closest government school.

For years, state legislators have neglected to extend to our kids the kinds of options available to students in the rest of the country. Nebraska is one of just three states without a school choice program, leaving our most vulnerable children in cyclical poverty.

This legislative session, our state senators have a chance to pass Opportunity Scholarships (LB364), which would allow private individuals and businesses to receive a tax credit when they donate to a scholarship fund for low- and medium-income students who want to attend a private school of their choice. Several of our senators attended private school themselves or sent their own children to private school, yet they have failed to pass legislation that would attract money from the private sector to rescue kids in need. Let’s hope 2021 is the year Nebraska finally proves that all children matter, regardless of how much their parents make.

Rachel Terry

Lincoln, NE

 

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