Guy Ciarrocchi: Philadelphia’s ‘secret voucher program’ 

What I and many others have known for years is now public.

School tuition vouchers have existed in Philadelphia for decades. Public dollars are being used to send a select group of very deserving students to non-public schools — including Catholic schools — in greater Philadelphia.

In one commonsense, compassionate program, all of the alleged arguments against school choice and tuition vouchers disappear before our eyes, along with some myths about public education.

As detailed by the Commonwealth Foundation’s Senior Education Policy Analyst, Rachel Langan, the Philadelphia School District (“PSD”) has been outsourcing special education for some students for years. In the 2023-24 school year, 681students attended non-public schools with the PSD paying over $35 million for tuition.

In essence, they pay the cost of tuition and services of certain special education students so that those students are able to attend a school where they can learn while having any special needs met.

To which I say: Amen.

This policy and approach is in the best interests of these children. The PSD acknowledges that it cannot adequately educate and care for these children, but there are non-public schools that can — including Catholic and other religious schools. And since the parents are taxpayers, and since the parents could not afford to pay for the education at the non-public schools that would help their children succeed, the district uses those tax dollars to pay for the cost of educating the students at other schools.

You might ask: what’s the big deal? 

The “big deal” is that this is a voucher program. This is the type of program that the Philadelphia School District, its lobbyists, the teachers unions, their allies and self-proclaimed protectors against “church-state” violations have lobbied against, campaigned against and gone to the US Supreme Court to try to stop.

Yet, this policy is happening now, and has been for decades. 

No protests or speeches at Philadelphia school board meetings. No lobbying in Harrisburg or DC to stop it. No court cases. 

A review of the education swamp’s arguments against school vouchers highlights the irony of this successful, compassionate, commonsense program happening (almost) without a peep. (This applies to all variations of vouchers — education scholarships like “Lifeline,” charitable tax credits or refundable tax credits.)

They allege that any type of voucher program violates the First Amendment — the so-called “separation of church and state.” Not only has the US Supreme Court upheld vouchers as legally permissible on several occasions, taxpayers frequently use vouchers, loans, grants, Medicare and Medicaid to do everything from go to the hospital, to daycare, to attending colleges and even seminaries.

They allege that vouchers won’t work because non-public schools won’t admit “everyone.” Well, they clearly will accept 681 students with severe physical or mental disabilities. And don’t forget, federal taxpayers funded grants and loans are used at Villanova University, Yeshiva University, and Brigham Young University — yet, they don’t accept “everyone.” Then again, neither does Temple or West Chester Universities, despite being taxpayer-funded — and also state-run, in the case of West Chester.

They oppose vouchers because they “take money away” from public schools. Well, nobody seems to be grumbling about the $35 million that the school district spent last year alone. Plus, looking again to college as an analogy, no one ever suggests that when taxpayers funded grants or loans are used by students to attend Villanova or St. Joseph’s Universities that the money “was taken away” from West Chester or Temple.

Students get to find a place that works and uses the taxpayer-funded government benefit as theye (or their parents) deem appropriate.

So, apparently, using taxpayer dollars that could’ve been used at a public school yet instead were used at a non-public — even religious — school for special education students is not a First Amendment violation and doesn’t take money away from public education.

Why? Because this policy is student-focused and recognizes the parents’ wishes to find a school that works. Without blaming the PSD, the parent gets to choose.

It’s a win-win-win for the students, the district — and the taxpayers.

A few final thoughts. No, this policy doesn’t work perfectly. At times, the PSD doesn’t tell people that it’s available. Parents sometimes have to lobby, fight and — regrettably — even sue the PSD to get the accommodation to which their child is entitled.

The mere existence and scope of this program — in place for decades — runs 180-degrees against the often used anti-voucher argument that public schools “have to take everyone.” Clearly, not only don’t they “have to,” they very often freely pay to have the special education students learn elsewhere.

And, further research by the Commonwealth Foundation will likely conclude that this policy is not unique to only Philadelphia.

Again, that is a good thing. Students attending a school that works for them is a good thing!

When vouchers, scholarships or tax credits are being debated, again, in Harrisburg, or when the tax credit debate begins in Washington, DC, and opponents start yelling about the First Amendment, “all” students being admitted, or “money being taken away from public schools,” remember what’s been happening in Philadelphia for decades. And note the opponents’ hypocrisy.

And, never forget the pledge of Governor Josh Shapiro on live television: “I believe that every child of God deserves a shot here in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.” 

To which I say again: Amen.

Guy Ciarrocchi is a Senior Fellow with the Commonwealth Foundation. He writes for Broad + Liberty and RealClear Pennsylvania. Follow Guy at @PaSuburbsGuy.