In Praise of Vouchers

Liberals may be surprised to discover that there's a history of progressives who have supported the notion of school vouchers, too. Bipartisan effort is needed

by Chris Farrell

When it comes to addressing America's social and economic ills, the reform mantra chanted by everyone from economists to chief executives to governors is "Fix K-12 Education." American employers value an educated workforce in an economy where ideas and skills matter more than brawn and endurance. The worldwide competition for markets and profits is intensifying.

Yet by many measures—from international test comparisons to the black/white achievement gap—America's K-12 educators aren't doing enough to prepare youngsters for the new world of brain work. Worse, the education system is completely failing a core of minority inner-city kids. The bankruptcy of the Education Establishment in the nation's inner cities has an enormous social impact.

Over the past two decades, the majority of school reformers have decided that what's needed to improve the public school system is more choice and competition—especially in poor neighborhoods. That's why most states allow charter schools. Some cities have turned over public money to private operators, like the Edison Schools.

Nobel Laureate's Legacy

Such initiatives are resisted by the Education Establishment and its allies—liberal lobbying groups, political progressives, and the like. And the most vehement and vituperative opposition is reserved for voucher school-choice programs, which give parents taxpayer money to send their kids to private schools, including religious ones. Opponents charge that the voucher movement is an assault on public education by free-market right-wing zealots.

Too bad. There is a strong progressive case to be made that vouchers offer disadvantaged children their best chance for getting a decent education. But conservative advocates for vouchers also need to realize that a well-constructed program will cost big bucks. If conservatives are serious about equality of opportunity for all rather than stacking the game for the benefit of the few, then vouchers must become an extremely well-funded crusade. And if liberals are earnest about attacking inequality, they should realize that society's compelling interest in education and the interests of the Education Establishment aren't synonymous.

The current voucher movement traces its intellectual heritage to the Nobel laureate Milton Friedman, the recently deceased University of Chicago economist (see BusinessWeek.com, 11/17/06, "Milton Friedman: Death of a Giant"). Friedman was not only a brilliant theoretical economist, but he also brimmed with public-policy ideas laced with laissez-faire enthusiasm. In 1955, he wrote an essay promoting the idea of a universal education voucher for primary school students. (You can read Professor Friedman's article "The Role of Government in Education" at www.schoolchoices.org/roo/fried1.htm). It's worth quoting him at length.

Progressive Roots, Too

"Let the subsidy be made available to parents regardless where they send their children—provided only that it be to schools that satisfy specified minimum standards—and a wide variety of schools will spring up to meet the demand. Parents could express their views about schools directly, by withdrawing their children from one school and sending them to another, to a much greater extent than is now possible. In general, they can now take this step only by simultaneously changing their place of residence. For the rest, they can express their views only through cumbrous political channels.…Here, as in other fields, competitive private enterprise is likely to be far more efficient in meeting consumer demands than either nationalized enterprises or enterprises run to serve other purposes."

Friedman's proposal—albeit with one major difference—eventually gathered momentum among conservative think tanks and right-wing politicians. He wanted every family to receive vouchers.