Roy Moore on school choice

Moore's platform contains several intriguing ideas that may broaden his appeal to Alabama voters - beyond the religious conservatives that now form his base. On education, for example, no other candidate or potential candidate has taken such a strong position in favor of expanding parental choice.

To my knowledge, Gov. Riley has never paid much lip service to the idea, although it will be interesting to see how he addresses it in the upcoming campaign. Don Siegelman still believes that a state lottery is the solution to all our problems, and Lucy Baxley - who knows? She'll take whatever position her advisers tell her she should take.

Now, here we have Roy Moore - ultraconservative, Bible-thumping Roy Moore - signalling his support for fundamental reform of a public education system that restrains achievement and rewards mediocrity. Specifically, Moore says that he will "explore enhancements to the public education system, such as charter schools, private tax credits, (SGO) scholarships granting organizations."

That sounds remarkably similar to a plan proposed by South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford called the "Put Parents in Charge Act." Sanford's proposal would provide tax credits (not deductions - credits) to parents of school-age children in order to pay the cost of tuition at the private or parochial school of their choice. It would also allow the creation of privately-funded "scholarship granting organizations" to help pay tuition for those who can't afford the cost. Those who contribute to SGO's would receive a dollar-for-dollar tax credit for their donations. The idea is literally to "put parents in charge" by providing them with the financial means to choose a school - public or private - that best fits their own needs and objectives, rather than those of the state.

Sanford's bill failed in this year's legislative session, amid opposition from the teachers' union and the state Board of Education, but South Carolina's school choice proponents have vowed to fight again another day. "Put Parents in Charge" may not prove to be the best model for a school choice program, but it's nice to see that at least one Alabama politician is thinking outside the box when it comes to public education. Let the debates begin.