School voucher
A school voucher, also called an education
voucher, is a certificate issued by the gov-
ernment by which parents can pay for the
education of their children at a school of
their choice, rather than the public school to
which they are assigned.
History
The oldest continuing school voucher pro-
grams existing today in the United States are
the Town Tuitioning programs in Vermont
and Maine, beginning in 1869[1] and 1873[2]
respectively. Because some towns in these
states operate neither local high schools nor
elementary schools, students in these towns
"are eligible for a voucher to attend [either]
public schools in other towns or non-religious
private schools. In these cases, the ’sending’
towns pay tuition directly to the ’receiving’
schools."[1][2]
In some Southern states during the 1960s,
school vouchers were used as a method of
perpetuating segregation. In a few instances,
public schools were closed outright and
vouchers were issued to parents. The vouch-
ers,
in many cases, were only good at
privately segregated schools, known as se-
gregation academies.[3] Today, all modern
voucher programs prohibit against racial
discrimination.
Nobel Prize winning economist Milton
Friedman argued for the modern concept of
vouchers in the 1950s, stating that competi-
tion would improve schools and cost effi-
ciency. The view further gained popularity
with the 1980 TV broadcast of Friedman’s
series "Free to Choose" for which volume 6
was devoted entirely to promoting "educa-
tional freedom" through programs like school
vouchers.[4] Vouchers have since been intro-
duced in countries all over the world but are
controversial as they reflect political and
ideological splits as well as limiting the role
of unions in education.
Controversy
Proponents
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Chicago school of economics
Movements
Libertarianism
Neoliberalism
Neoconservatism
Positive non-interventionism
Organizations
Cato Institute
Reason Foundation
George Mason University
Library of Economics and Liberty
Beliefs
Monetarism
Neoclassical e