Chavous: Norton is Misleading the Public About Local Support, Academic Effectiveness of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program

WASHINGTON, Jan. 27, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Kevin P. Chavous, former D.C. Councilman and chairman of the Black Alliance for Educational Options, released the following statement regarding Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton's recent press release—in which she explained her opposition to the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program:

D.C. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton's press release yesterday in response to new bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program omitted several important facts about the history and, more importantly, the results of this successful program serving low-income families in the District.

Congresswoman Norton says sponsors are "ignoring a compromise reached on this issue" and the "home-rule public charter alternative." Neither is accurate.

The Democratic majority in the 111th Congress, at Congresswoman Norton's insistence, systematically reduced funding for the Opportunity Scholarship Program and prevented new children from joining, effectively ending the program. This was not a compromise. This was Congress ignoring the will and bulldozing thousands of low-income parents, a majority of the City Council, and the Public Schools Chancellor. The OSP began as an equal part of a three-sector federal initiative to support educational improvement in the District of Columbia. It was an initiative developed and championed by city officials, all of us proud Democrats. Mrs. Norton's longstanding position that the Opportunity Scholarship Program was "imposed" upon the city is totally inaccurate. Moreover, this initiative has resulted in more than $400 million in federal assistance to the District for educational improvement and Mrs. Norton's opposition risks jeopardizing these educational improvement funds in the future.

Congresswoman Norton's contention that there is no public support for the Opportunity Scholarship Program in the city ignores the facts. Nearly 9,000 families have applied to participate in the scholarship program; nearly 8,000 district residents signed a petition urging continuation of the scholarship program; three separate and unaffiliated polls showed between 66 percent and 77 percent support for the scholarship program; and most city officials support maintaining this option for low-income parents.

The results of the Opportunity Scholarship speak for themselves. According to the most recent report from the Institute of Education Sciences, which has used the gold standard of research models, students who actually used their scholarships had a 91 percent graduation rate – 21 percent higher than those who were not offered a scholarship. Scholarship children have shown progress in reading over the evaluation period. Parental satisfaction with the program is overwhelming according to multiple studies over the last six years. Nobody can possibly say that children who were fortunate enough to have received an opportunity scholarship did not benefit tremendously.

Congresswoman Norton states that Congress should continue to fund public charter schools in the District because they are a model for the nation. Indeed, the District has a robust charter school sector that serves nearly 40 percent of K-12 children. Mrs. Norton, who initially opposed the charter law, is ignoring the fact that the best charter schools in the district have very long waiting lists and children who wish to exercise choice often cannot get into a charter school. Her position to deny low-income families in struggling schools the option of an opportunity scholarship is preventing these children from accessing a quality education right now. That is wrong.

Congresswoman Norton says District parents "are entirely justified in seeking alternatives to DCPS and every parent in the District is entitled to such an alternative."  Here, we are in absolute agreement. The difference is that I am siding with thousands of low-income D.C. families, most D.C. residents and local officials to say we need ALL AVAILABLE OPTIONS to help these children access educational opportunity right now. Not another year, or two, or five, but right now. We owe it to these children to put the politics aside and reauthorize the Opportunity Scholarship Program, which has been an educational lifeline for more than 3,000 children in our city. I urge Congresswoman Norton to join us and put the interests of these families first.

SOURCE Kevin P. Chavous