by T. Keung Hui, Education Reporter for the Raleigh News & Observer
North Carolina is about to see record expansion in the number of students who get taxpayer funded vouchers to attend private schools. For the first time in the state’s history, any family can apply for an Opportunity Scholarship to cover K-12 private school costs, regardless of their income. The state has received 47,917 completed applications as of Feb. 15 after getting more than 31,600 applications during the first five days of filing in February. The application period runs to March 1. The new rules could lead to a 60% increase this year in the number of students getting a voucher. And that number will only continue to rise as state lawmakers plan to spend $4.7 billion on vouchers over the next decade.
“Historic expansion of the Opportunity Scholarship Program will lead to historic application numbers this year; I have no doubt,” Mike Long, president of Parents For Educational Freedom in North Carolina, said in a statement. “Since the program was created, we have only seen OSP enrollment numbers rise, as has demand for the scholarship, because families across our state deserve to have that choice in their child’s education.”
Read the entire article at the Raleigh News & Observer’s website.