In an interesting reversal of conventional logic consider the following conundrum. The public schools spend more per student than the local parochial (Catholic) schools. The public schools pay their teachers more than the parochial schools. The parochial schools deliver quality education that the public schools just can't seem to match. Why should we continue spend more for an inferior educational product?

As a related issue, the school system is now converting to a public charter system. State money is following the student. Unsuccessful schools will wither and die. Why are the parochial and private schools excluded from this system? Vouchers would convert this to a free market system overnight.

Opponents to vouchers make the point that vouchers would strip money from the public schools. The NEA argues that vouchers are bad educationally, socially, legally and politically. The arguments ultimately focus on race and religion. For some reason the teacher's unions are leading this argument.

Another system called Choice is just code for public charter schools. Parents register kids at the school of their choice and the public money follows the kids. Schools are operated according to charters granted to operators (companies) based on their ability to meet state imposed requirements like open access and  providing a secular education delivering the state's curriculum. In the most open case, parents organize to manage the schools directly. In the more common American model, charter school companies develop their independent brands and operate schools wherever they can win a charter. Some companies operate their franchise nationwide. Local politically focused, school boards become obsolete. The most significant difference between traditional private schools and public charters is the exclusion of religious affiliation from the public charters.


Several countries worldwide, notably New Zealand, require at least a modest tuition payment at all schools. They argue that payment encourages engagement with the school system by both the students and their parents. It also creates a more natural customer-supplier relationship.

The federal government acted to end racial integration in the 1960's by eliminating the segregation of public schools. The Orleans Public School System was hard hit by this act of social engineering. Within ten years the schools had re-segregated themselves.

The vast majority of affluent parents, both black and white abandoned all but a few of the public schools and placed their children in private institutions. Less affluent whites moved out of the city to gain access to the Jefferson or St. Tammany public schools. The Orleans public schools came to be dominated by the less affluent black students.

Discipline problems grew in the public schools, paralleling the crime problems in the larger population. Violence, even murder, found its way onto the campuses. Management in the form of the school board did not handle these challenges well. Through fraud and mismanagement, costs grew while services declined. Many teachers frustrated with the problems of the public schools migrated out of Orleans or to the private schools even though they paid smaller salaries.