COLUMBUS, Ind. — Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. board members approved a resolution opposing state legislation that would expand school choice scholarships and create Education Savings Accounts.
Board members approved a resolution Monday stating the board “opposes and condemns the establishment of education scholarship accounts and the expansion of the Indiana choice scholarship program” proposed in House Bill 1005 and Senate Bill 412.
In regards to school choice, the resolution states that non-public schools are exempt from public oversight.
“The expansion of the Indiana school choice scholarship program would direct additional resources to non-public schools that are not held accountable to taxpayers for the use of public funds,” the resolution states.
The resolution also maintains that most families who benefit from school choice scholarships and Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) would be “relatively affluent,” while the proposed budget under HB 1001 would limit funding for “public schools that serve students from poverty.”
The resolution also holds that education savings accounts would “incentivize families to withdraw from public schools” and take funding away from public education.
“Education savings accounts take money from public schools for individuals to spend on education products and services, including textbooks and school uniforms, yet Indiana does not provide full funding for textbooks for public school students,” the resolution states.
It adds that the proposed bills would allow the use of up to $26,000 of “unspent, tax deductible education savings account funds” to pay a child’s college tuition.
Superintendent Jim Roberts explained that under HB 1005, eligible students can accumulate up to a $2,000 a year, so 13 years of K-12 education could add up to $26,000.
“Saying that we’re going to offer or make school choice available is one thing,” he said. “But then getting into a situation where a person might be able to accumulate $26,000 toward a college situation, that’s getting beyond school choice.”
For more on this story, see Wednesday’s Republic.
