Georgia Ranks 8th In Parent Power Index For Education
The Center for Education Reform has released its “Parent Power Index”, ranking states according to options for family driven education options. Georgia ranks 8th in the nation, but still receives a grade of “C”.
Georgia receives it’s highest marks for Transparency (95%) and teacher quality (82%). Lower marks are received for access to Charter Schools (75%) and School Choice (68%). The state received no points (0%) for personalized learning.
Georgia is at a turning point for school choice. Last weeks elections likely saved Student Scholarship Organizations (SSO’s), as Stacey Abrams had vowed to eliminate them.
This morning, Geoff Duncan announced his leadership team, which includes former state Representative and unapologetic school choice advocate Mike Dudgeon. (Chip Lake will be Chief of Staff, and John Porter also to serve on Duncan’s team.) That, combined with Senator Lindsey Tippins recently clipped wings, will likely find a Georgia Senate considering significantly more school choice proposals.
So, Georgia currently ranks 8th, but there’s significant room for improvement. The election results and subsequent leadership changes indicate that new leadership may be more willing to close the gap between #8 and #1.
About Author
Charlie
Founder of GeorgiaPol.com; Now weekly columnist Very interested in Georgia and Georginas. Interest in politics is waning daily.
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Oh, man, I can’t wait to have more choice to either send my child to either a school district impoverished by school vouchers, a lowest-bidder for-profit school, or a private school I can only wish I could afford!
What I would like to see more parent (and tax payers in general) involvement in the school board process. Do you know how many parents I see at board meetings? ( I either attend, watch, or read the minutes of over 50 Georgia board a month.) Unless their child is getting an award, or they are outrage over something at the school their child goes to, no one really pays attention to school boards or their meetings. Outside of personnel, all major choices by a system have to be done by a board vote, and there is a paper trail if you look for it on how they got to that decision and what or who was the driving force for it.
So my daughter goes to GPS not a county school. Maybe one day I will get a voucher check or at least not have to pay school property taxes as I am no buden to the school system.
So I have no children (and it was not may choice to be childless before you go down that road). If I have to pay school property taxes, so do you. It’s not about Just. Your. Child.
One day I will be 65 and in Dade County I won’t for my house and 5 acres. Not based on income. So if your going to give a school exemption for the seniors then everybody should be able to get it.
If you have lived there the whole time then you are considered to have already paid your fair share. Otherwise when you turn 65 move across the line to Tennessee, pay no state income tax, but in most counties you will still pay school taxes on your property. Most counties want to incentivize retirees to settle there as they are less of a burden on county expenses. To compete against Tennessee and Florida this is just one small incentive when compared to an income tax.
One day your child will no longer be your dependent and you will no longer able to take federal and state tax credits – plus a deduction- for your child (not based on income). Why can I have a credit for not having a child.?
Stop whining.
I don’t have any kids either. I don’t mind paying the property tax, but the “child tax credits” we see from time to time are pretty irksome.
Agreed.