SURVEY: VOUCHERS GAINING APPROVAL
Miami Herald, The (FL) - Sunday, January 30, 2000
Author: ANALISA NAZARENO, anazareno@herald.com
At least 50 private schools in South Florida now say they would accept state tuition vouchers, compared to only three schools a year ago, a Herald survey has found.
The reason: Many private school administrators feel their hands won't be tied by government strings if they participate in the Opportunity Scholarship program, a key part of Gov. Jeb Bush's A+ Plan for Education.
``The fears turned out not to be true,'' said Brother Richard De Maria, the superintendent of the Archdiocese of Miami school system, which has 62 schools in Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties.
According to a survey of Dade private school directors, 26 said they would accept students with vouchers, while 67 said they would not or did not respond. In Broward, 24 schools said they would take voucher students; 30 said they would not.
Last year, a similar survey showed only three schools in Dade and Broward would participate in the plan. Many administrators expressed concerns the government might restrict their ability to teach religion, take away their autonomy or alter their curriculum.
``Initially, some of my teachers were very concerned that students would come to the school who don't believe in the Catholic religion or don't believe in God,'' said Betty Furmanick, principal of St. John the Apostle School in Hialeah. ``I said to them, `Why would they come to St. John the Apostle if they didn't want to abide by what we believe in?' ''
Last year's survey took place while legislators were working out the details of the voucher plan.
Lawmakers passed a law that graded public schools A through F, largely on the basis of standardized test scores. It allowed students at ``chronically failing schools'' - those getting F's twice in four years - to attend private schools participating in the voucher program or other public schools.
This year, students at two Escambia County elementaries became the first in Florida to be eligible for vouchers.
Many more are likely to follow. Last summer, 78 schools around the state received F's, including 26 in Miami-Dade. Potentially, about 25,000 Dade students could be eligible for vouchers if those schools receive another failing grade this year.
While private school administrators agreed that students in failing schools should have options, they weren't willing to open their doors to them if that meant altering their program.
RELIGION EXEMPTION
Under previous versions of the legislation, parochial school administrators would have been required to exempt students from any religious activities and classes if the parents didn't want their children to participate.
The law that ultimately passed last year requires religious schools to ``agree not to compel'' voucher students to ``profess a specific ideological belief, to pray or to worship.''
School administrators throughout the state said they have watched as the voucher experiment has evolved in Escambia, where Catholic school leaders said the program is still a work in progress.
``There have been no restrictions on our curriculum,'' said Sister Mary Caplice, the superintendent for the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee. ``The final version of the law is still not clear. There continue to be things that we have to work out, but there's room for negotiation in the law.''
Four Catholic schools and a secular Montessori school enrolled 58 students from Spencer Bibbs and A.A. Dixon elementaries who accepted the tuition vouchers from the state.
Since the school year started, one parent removed her three children from St. John the Evangelist and returned them to public school. The mother said the children felt that the teachers were expecting them to be discipline problems, and she implied the staff had racial problems.
MEDIA DEPICTIONS
Caplice blamed the media for depicting voucher students as ``being so far behind academically and as serious discipline problems.''
``There was certainly some apprehension, because the procedures that would be used to implement the law were not in place,'' Caplice said.
Private school administrators in Miami-Dade said they continue to be concerned about many aspects of the law.
``We had concerns, because they say we would have to relax our admission standards,'' said Mary Jo Crosby, principal of Christian Family Academy in Naranja. ``We require our students to bring recommendations from their church. What if the child doesn't go to church?''
Most school administrators statewide remain cautious and unwilling to participate in the voucher plan, said C. Skardon Bliss, the president of the Florida Association of Academic Nonpublic Schools.
``There will be schools participating, but there are still questions,'' Bliss said. ``Do they have the space? Many schools have waiting lists and no room. Can they cope with the religious questions? And admissions directors have their own questions: `Why do we have to randomly accept students?' ''
Under the state law, private school administrators have until May 1 to decide whether they want to participate in the voucher program.
SCHOOLS OPEN TO VOUCHERS
Responding to a Herald survey, these private schools said they would be willing to accept students transferring from ``chronically failing'' public schools with state tuition vouchers.
American Christian School
Archbishop Curley/Notre Dame High School
Biscayne Academy
Brito Miami Private School
Calusa Preparatory School
Champagnat Catholic School of Hialeah
Christopher Columbus High School
Easter Seal Demonstration School
Gettysburg Academy of Miami
Guardian Shepherd Lutheran Christian Day
Holy Cross Lutheran School
Learning Experience School
Paladin Academy
Rainbow Christian School
Revelation Christian Academy
St. Brendan High School
St. Francis Xavier School
St. John the Apostle School
St. Luke Christian School
South Florida International Academy
South Miami Christian Elementary and Happi-Tymes Preschool
Temple Beth Am Day School
The Glory of God Christian School
Toras Emes Academy of Miami
Von Wedel Montessori School
Westminster Christian School
The reason: Many private school administrators feel their hands won't be tied by government strings if they participate in the Opportunity Scholarship program, a key part of Gov. Jeb Bush's A+ Plan for Education.
``The fears turned out not to be true,'' said Brother Richard De Maria, the superintendent of the Archdiocese of Miami school system, which has 62 schools in Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties.
According to a survey of Dade private school directors, 26 said they would accept students with vouchers, while 67 said they would not or did not respond. In Broward, 24 schools said they would take voucher students; 30 said they would not.
Last year, a similar survey showed only three schools in Dade and Broward would participate in the plan. Many administrators expressed concerns the government might restrict their ability to teach religion, take away their autonomy or alter their curriculum.
``Initially, some of my teachers were very concerned that students would come to the school who don't believe in the Catholic religion or don't believe in God,'' said Betty Furmanick, principal of St. John the Apostle School in Hialeah. ``I said to them, `Why would they come to St. John the Apostle if they didn't want to abide by what we believe in?' ''
Last year's survey took place while legislators were working out the details of the voucher plan.
Lawmakers passed a law that graded public schools A through F, largely on the basis of standardized test scores. It allowed students at ``chronically failing schools'' - those getting F's twice in four years - to attend private schools participating in the voucher program or other public schools.
This year, students at two Escambia County elementaries became the first in Florida to be eligible for vouchers.
Many more are likely to follow. Last summer, 78 schools around the state received F's, including 26 in Miami-Dade. Potentially, about 25,000 Dade students could be eligible for vouchers if those schools receive another failing grade this year.
While private school administrators agreed that students in failing schools should have options, they weren't willing to open their doors to them if that meant altering their program.
RELIGION EXEMPTION
Under previous versions of the legislation, parochial school administrators would have been required to exempt students from any religious activities and classes if the parents didn't want their children to participate.
The law that ultimately passed last year requires religious schools to ``agree not to compel'' voucher students to ``profess a specific ideological belief, to pray or to worship.''
School administrators throughout the state said they have watched as the voucher experiment has evolved in Escambia, where Catholic school leaders said the program is still a work in progress.
``There have been no restrictions on our curriculum,'' said Sister Mary Caplice, the superintendent for the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee. ``The final version of the law is still not clear. There continue to be things that we have to work out, but there's room for negotiation in the law.''
Four Catholic schools and a secular Montessori school enrolled 58 students from Spencer Bibbs and A.A. Dixon elementaries who accepted the tuition vouchers from the state.
Since the school year started, one parent removed her three children from St. John the Evangelist and returned them to public school. The mother said the children felt that the teachers were expecting them to be discipline problems, and she implied the staff had racial problems.
MEDIA DEPICTIONS
Caplice blamed the media for depicting voucher students as ``being so far behind academically and as serious discipline problems.''
``There was certainly some apprehension, because the procedures that would be used to implement the law were not in place,'' Caplice said.
Private school administrators in Miami-Dade said they continue to be concerned about many aspects of the law.
``We had concerns, because they say we would have to relax our admission standards,'' said Mary Jo Crosby, principal of Christian Family Academy in Naranja. ``We require our students to bring recommendations from their church. What if the child doesn't go to church?''
Most school administrators statewide remain cautious and unwilling to participate in the voucher plan, said C. Skardon Bliss, the president of the Florida Association of Academic Nonpublic Schools.
``There will be schools participating, but there are still questions,'' Bliss said. ``Do they have the space? Many schools have waiting lists and no room. Can they cope with the religious questions? And admissions directors have their own questions: `Why do we have to randomly accept students?' ''
Under the state law, private school administrators have until May 1 to decide whether they want to participate in the voucher program.
SCHOOLS OPEN TO VOUCHERS
Responding to a Herald survey, these private schools said they would be willing to accept students transferring from ``chronically failing'' public schools with state tuition vouchers.
American Christian School
Archbishop Curley/Notre Dame High School
Biscayne Academy
Brito Miami Private School
Calusa Preparatory School
Champagnat Catholic School of Hialeah
Christopher Columbus High School
Easter Seal Demonstration School
Gettysburg Academy of Miami
Guardian Shepherd Lutheran Christian Day
Holy Cross Lutheran School
Learning Experience School
Paladin Academy
Rainbow Christian School
Revelation Christian Academy
St. Brendan High School
St. Francis Xavier School
St. John the Apostle School
St. Luke Christian School
South Florida International Academy
South Miami Christian Elementary and Happi-Tymes Preschool
Temple Beth Am Day School
The Glory of God Christian School
Toras Emes Academy of Miami
Von Wedel Montessori School
Westminster Christian School
Caption: photo: Andrew Genden at Palmer Trinity school (a)
C.W. GRIFFIN/HERALD STAFF CHOICES: Andrew Genden, right, closes laptop at Palmer Trinity in South Dade. Some private schools are warming to tuition vouchers.
Memo: see SCHOOLS OPEN TO VOUCHERS at end
C.W. GRIFFIN/HERALD STAFF CHOICES: Andrew Genden, right, closes laptop at Palmer Trinity in South Dade. Some private schools are warming to tuition vouchers.
Memo: see SCHOOLS OPEN TO VOUCHERS at end
Edition: Final
Section: Local
Page: 1B
Index Terms: SCHOOL PRIVATE VOUCHER LIST
Record Number: 0002010107
Copyright (c) 2000 The Miami Herald
Section: Local
Page: 1B
Index Terms: SCHOOL PRIVATE VOUCHER LIST
Record Number: 0002010107
Copyright (c) 2000 The Miami Herald
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