Sherrill’s school choice dilemma: Funding windfall or private school vouchers?
Did you know search engines like Google are changing the way you see news? Keep Chalkbeat’s valuable education coverage at the top of your feeds by clicking here and checking the box next to our name. This story was originally published by NJ Spotlight News through the NJ News Wire. Gov. Mikie Sherrill faces a tough choice: Enroll New Jersey in President Donald Trump’s new school choice program by Jan. 1, or leave what could be hundreds of millions of federal dollars on the table. Say yes, and face backlash from her blue-wave-emboldened base, which calls this a backdoor school voucher program channeling public money to private and religious schools. Say no, and be accused of forfeiting federal dollars for needy New Jersey kids, including those desperate to escape struggling schools or afford extra tutoring. “The bottom line is that if you turn it down, it’s less money for New Jersey families. It makes the whole, sum total of existing in New Jersey, if you have kids, less affordable,” says Republican state budget leader Declan O’Scanlon. “How can you run on affordability and do that?” Opponents, meanwhile, call it a costly private school handout that starves public schools. They often
