Congressman wants school voucher program to continue

A leading House Republican says that a school voucher program for D.C. students has been successful and should continue. The District is the only jurisdiction in the country where students can get access to federal funds to pay for private school tuition. City leaders are adamantly against the program, saying that Congress should invest instead in the city’s public and charter schools. Funding equal to the voucher program is being awarded to said schools. Representative Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican, stated that 89 percent of voucher recipients graduated from high school last year, compared to 58 percent of District public school students. Chaffetz is head of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and held a hearing in regards to the voucher program on Thursday. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, who represents the District in Congress, says the voucher program has not improved academic performance or achievement.