State: Grades renew voucher debate

TALLAHASSEE -- Education already was the biggest issue in the governor's race, and the latest round of school testing underscores the biggest difference between Jeb Bush and his Democratic opponents.

In a word: vouchers.

Florida is about to witness the biggest expansion of school vouchers since Bush took office. Ten schools in four counties got F grades for the second time in four years, making students there eligible for public money to attend private schools.

Democrats pounced.

"Taking dollars out of those public schools for voucher programs is not the answer," said Democratic front-runner Janet Reno.

Democrat Bill McBride, trailing Reno but endorsed by a teacher union, said: "You've got to make sure, before you siphon money out of the public schools, that you're funding the public schools at an adequate level. We aren't doing that now."

Bush shrugged off the criticism, calling such talk scare tactics.

But even some students challenged Bush on his education record. In a question-and-answer session with more than 500 teenagers at the annual Boys State convention in Tallahassee, Bush cited the jump in A-rated schools, the number of students going to college and other trends that he says proves his plan is a success.

"I'm proud of that record. Change is tough," Bush said. "I could have taken it easy, could've kept it inside the lines, not challenged everything, and we wouldn't have got the results we're getting right now."

One Pensacola youth told Bush that one of his city's two pioneer voucher schools, Dixon Elementary, is "dying." Bush corrected the youngster, saying the school was targeted for closing because of declining enrollment, not because of vouchers.

School board members from around the state said the shock of some school grades might undermine public confidence in Bush's accountability program.

"I believe people already had doubts about this plan,' said Kathleen Gordon, school board member from Orange County, where 11 schools got F grades. Gordon, a Democrat, said five such schools are in her district. "Now, I don't think they like it at all. Those schools and those kids are in my neighborhood."

But John Dewitt, a Republican board member from Escambia County, said while he disagrees with Bush's school grading system, he questions whether it's a crucial issue to voters.

"Yesterday all we did was hurt a bunch of schools, hurt some kids and some principals," said Dewitt, whose district had one school with an F grade. "I think educators understand that. School boards understand that. I don't know if the public generally understands that."

Polls show Floridians are divided on vouchers. A St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald poll in March found voters opposed, 53 percent to 44 percent.

Bush cited an April study by the nonpartisan Collins Center for Public Policy at Florida State University of a state law that gives tax credits to companies that provide tuition scholarships to private schools for low-income students.

The study concluded that the corporate voucher program might increase state money available to public schools because the amount spent per student is more than the per-pupil value of the tax benefit and because K-12 spending will continue to grow as the economy grows.

"These initiatives don't drain money from the public schools," Bush said. "That argument is a false one to scare people."

Bush apparently was in no mood to debate McBride on the issue. Asked about his opponent's criticism, Bush shook his head and said: "Let him win the primary first."

McBride emphasized that the new voucher schools are in poor areas where many students do not speak English. He cited Edison High in Miami as a case in point. But Bush said that the same high-poverty areas where the F schools are located had many more schools rated A or B. The explanation, Bush said, is the level of dedication by principals, teachers, parents and students.

The focus on the F grades obscured a fact Bush emphasized on Thursday: widespread improvement across the state. Nearly 60 percent of schools earned an A or a B, and nearly 40 percent improved by a grade or more.

Bush's campaign surfed newspaper web sites Thursday for favorable headlines: "Broward hails "spectacular' FCAT success" in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and "Manatee schools improve" in the Bradenton Herald. Democrats countered with their own examples: "State flunks 68 schools" (Orlando Sentinel) and the simple, stark "F" on the Tampa Tribune's front page.

Bush says parents of children who are "trapped in underperforming schools" should have more choice. McBride said it's Bush who's trapped in an "ideological rut" on education.

- Times staff writer Stephen Hegarty contributed to this report.

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Lucy Morgan

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