Recent developments in school choice and vouchers

In 1990 Milwaukee established the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, the firt of a number of cities and states to offer vouchers allowing some families to send children to parochial or private schools rather that their local public school. Enrollment began with 341 participating students in 1990-91, but by 2007-08, over 18,000 students participated in that program. (Carnoy, Adamson, Chudgar, Luschei, & Witte, 2007; Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, 2008; Witte & Thorn, 1996)

In 2007, 13 states and the District of Columbia provided some form of private school choice, with approximately 150,000 children using publicly funded scholarships to attend private school (Lips, 2008):

• Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Ohio, Vermont, Utah, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia have policies that provide taxpayer-funded scholarships to help students attend private elementary or secondary schools of choice.
• Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island offer incentives for contributions to scholarships programs or allow tax credits or deductions for education expenses, including private school tuition.