Did you know?: Most school vouchers do not help low-income kids

By Ashley Bean Thornton

School Vouchers (also known as Education Savings Accounts, “Parent Choice” and “School Choice”) are often presented as a way for low-income families to “escape failing public schools.”   We know from voucher programs in other states, however, often the reality does not match the promise. In Arizona for example, according to a recent article in Forbes Magazine, “Only 32% of the voucher applicants come from families making less than $60,000. And only 3.5% of voucher applicants came from zip codes with schools with D or F grades.” 

In Indiana, according to reporting by WFYI, Indianapolis Public Radio, “The 2023-24 academic year was the Indiana program’s 13th year. The typical student receiving a voucher is described as a White, elementary school-age girl from a household of four or five people with an income of nearly $100,000, according to the Indiana Department of Education.”  “Low-income” according to the Free or Reduced Lunch Program is 1.5 times the Federal poverty guideline.  That would be $31,200 X 1.5 = $46,800 for a family of four.

In the 2023 Texas Legislative Session the Texas Senate passed a bill that would have provided an $8,000 voucher for students who wanted to leave public school and go to private school. (The bill failed to pass the House.)

In Waco ISD 90% of the students are considered “low-income” according to the Free or Reduced Lunch Program standard. At most private schools in Waco, $8,000 is not enough to pay basic tuition plus books and uniforms, much less make up for the loss of free/reduced lunch, bus transportation and afterschool programs provided by public schools.  This would make it difficult for any truly low-income students in Waco to take advantage of the School Voucher program as it was proposed.

Here is a list of private schools I found in Waco and the annual tuition for elementary students at each one. (For consistency, I only included schools that meet 5 days a week.)

• Eagle Christian Academy – $9,965
• Live Oak Classical School – $11,250
• St. Paul’s Episcopal Day School – $10,210
• Waco Montessori School – $9,600
• Woodway Christian School – $7,600 + 415 Book fee
• St. Louis Catholic School – $8,800
• Ambleside School of Waco – $9,900

If the real goal is to help low-income students, subsidizing private schools with vouchers is not the answer. It would be better to invest in public schools so they are not “failing.”