Hundreds Call on Gov. Hochul to Reject Trump Voucher Scheme

Hundreds of New Yorkers from dozens of Labor, parent, education and civil rights groups stood shoulder to shoulder in Manhattan Wednesday morning urging Gov. Hochul to reject President Trump's taxpayer-funded private school voucher program. Together the groups called on the governor to opt out of the program, which would reroute public tax dollars to private schools.

Because these private schools could accept public money with no public accountability, they would remain free to reject students for nearly any reason, raising real concerns about whether public dollars would be used equitably and fairly.

"We don’t have to guess what will happen if Gov. Hochul opts into Trump’s voucher program," said UFT President Michael Mulgrew. “The evidence is already clear in the other states that started their own voucher plans. Public schools lose funding while an ever-growing amount of taxpayer money is given to private schools that have no accountability to anyone — none.”
 

Ninety percent of New York's children attend public schools, and New Yorkers agree that's where the money should stay; in recent polling more than 60 percent of voters said taxpayer dollars are better spent improving public schools, compared to just 8 percent who favor sending them to private school vouchers. Read more here, see video of the event here and read/watch coverage from Chalkbeat, NY1, and the NY Daily News.