(AP) — The Miami Archdiocese’s superintendent of schools says Catholic education is increasingly in demand in South Florida, now that all K-12 students regardless of income are allowed to use taxpayer-funded programs to pay for private school tuition.Against the backdrop of favorable decisions by the conservative-majority U.S. Supreme Court, Florida was among nine states that expanded school voucher programs last year. So many families have signed up for the taxpayer-funded tuition reimbursements, some states are already exceeding their budgets.
Some long-running religious schools are now planning for a fuller future after the wave of policy wins for the so-called school choice movement. Others hope voucher expansion comes to their state.
“We are moving into growth mode,” said Jim Rigg, superintendent of the Miami Archdiocese’s 64 schools. Accelerated by the state’s private school scholarship program, enrollment has risen for the last four years, reaching its highest peak in over a decade, he said.
“We are actively discussing new schools, either opened or reopened, over the next several years.”
But using public funds to pay for religious school tuition — especially with generous income limits or none at all — remains controversial as proponents gain ground in Republican-majority states. The movement gained momentum amid fallout from pandemic-era school restrictions, debates on how transgender students should participate in school life, and wars over books and curriculum related to race and LGBTQ+ issues.
More expansion may be ahead as legislatures in a majority of states consider dozens of bills and related court cases carry on. In Tennessee, for example, a Catholic school principal is hoping her students will soon be eligible for the stat …
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
Some long-running religious schools are now planning for a fuller future after the wave of policy wins for the so-called school choice movement. Others hope voucher expansion comes to their state.
“We are moving into growth mode,” said Jim Rigg, superintendent of the Miami Archdiocese’s 64 schools. Accelerated by the state’s private school scholarship program, enrollment has risen for the last four years, reaching its highest peak in over a decade, he said.
“We are actively discussing new schools, either opened or reopened, over the next several years.”
But using public funds to pay for religious school tuition — especially with generous income limits or none at all — remains controversial as proponents gain ground in Republican-majority states. The movement gained momentum amid fallout from pandemic-era school restrictions, debates on how transgender students should participate in school life, and wars over books and curriculum related to race and LGBTQ+ issues.
More expansion may be ahead as legislatures in a majority of states consider dozens of bills and related court cases carry on. In Tennessee, for example, a Catholic school principal is hoping her students will soon be eligible for the stat …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]