The United States is facing a huge problem: public education is in shambles. Students from Countries like Slovenia consistently outrank the United States in math and science proficiency. The average GPA in U.S. public schools has increased to an A- average yet SAT scores have decreased, showing that students are not getting smarter, but rather that grade inflation is prevalent. Pumping more money into these schools is not the answer. Government largesse will ensure that most of that money will go to administrative salaries and the students will never actually see a dime in the classroom. The solution to this growing problem is to close government schools and begin a voucher program.

A school voucher is a government check given to a family that they may use to pay for their children's education at a private school. The money from the check comes from funds originally designated to public school infrastructure. These vouchers allow students and their families greater choice in deciding where to go for school, instead of being assigned to the local public school.

As anybody who has ever taken an economics course knows, competition is good for markets because it incites innovation, encourages efficiency, and drives down prices, all of which benefits the consumer. Because school vouchers provide freedom of choice, parents can decide to remove their children from schools that they feel are not good enough and place them in better ones. By voting with their money, people can send a message to bad schools that they need to reform or they will face closing their doors. High quality schools will also be rewarded because they will be in greater demand.

Opponents of school vouchers believe that the vouchers will not provide enough money for public school kids to attend expensive private schools, though this concern is largely unfounded. Millions of dollars are spent each year on exorbitant salaries for secretaries, superintendents, and bond measures to upgrade buildings that are falling apart. Because public schools are no longer needed, that previously wasted money can be transferred to the students. This amount would be enough to cover the difference between what the students were originally allotted and the cost of the private school.

Another criticism from people who cannot accept that public schools are failing is that school vouchers violate the idea of separation of church and state. Unfortunately, separation of church and state is nowhere to be found in the First Amendment but rather in the Federalist Papers. This means that it is legally acceptable for the government to provide school vouchers to parochial institutions. If this bothered too many people, it would be feasible to allow them to earmark the part of their property taxes that goes toward school vouchers to go to only secular private schools.

The current situation of public schools is deplorable and it will not suddenly improve. The only smart option would be to switch to a school voucher system. This would get the government out of education and get them back to doing what they were originally meant to do: fight wars, pave roads, and deliver the mail. Speaking of that, there is a major pothole on Stonemill that they should look at.