- Kaleb Sy of Memphis is a freshman at Columbia University pursuing an economics degree with a minor in political science.
My elementary school experience was different from the traditional one. I attended a school with outdated textbooks, leaky roofs, and aged windows in a low-income neighborhood in North Memphis.
My public school teachers took the rags they were given. They made daily education miracles for my classmates and me, despite low pay and rhetoric from educational and governmental talking heads.
School vouchers were introduced to change this experience for students who attend poor public schools. The traditional understanding of school vouchers is encompassed by the tagline in the one-pager explaining Gov. Lee’s new school voucher program called the Education Freedom Scholarship Act of 2024, “Parents Choose, Students Succeed.”
However, there is no evidence to suggest that private school vouchers effectively increase student achievement among low-income students.
Tennessee legislative session:Gov. Bill Lee’s school voucher expansion bill draft: Here are new details on the proposal