Let's Help All of Nebraska's Students

In 2023 and 2024 Governor Pillen and the Legislature focused an abundance of energy on the educational needs of Nebraska's PreK-12 students. They increased public school funding by 37%, created a $1 billion dollar future education fund, and finally joined the 48 other states in offering all children the opportunity to attend the school that best fits their needs. But some do not like even the tiniest percentage of educational funding going to schools that the union does not control.

Even though funding for the new school choice program is only .02% of total PreK-12 education funding, some, including the teachers' union and Omaha progressives including Susie Buffett and University of Nebraska Regent Barbara Weitz, are criticizing its supporters. They are spending millions to stop low-income students, students who are getting bullied, or whose parents are in the Armed Services from accessing the same opportunities that most Nebraskans access every day. They claim school choice will hurt Nebraska's Public Schools. Do not let them fool you.

Nebraskans love school choice. Nebraska's 365,000 school age children attend 244 different public school districts or one of the 215 private schools spread across Nebraska. Many Nebraska counties have multiple public school districts. For instance, Douglas County has seven different school districts and so does Buffalo County. In sparsely populated Nebraska there may be only one public school per county and no private school, but nonetheless according to US Census Bureau statistics students in 89 of Nebraska's 93 counties attend an approved or accredited Nebraska private school.

Any review of residential real estate listings and ads in metro Omaha and in some cases elsewhere in Nebraska make clear that when house shopping a top priority of parents is the school district where the home is located. Of course, this option is mostly exercised by those who can afford to move to pricier areas of Douglas, Lancaster, or Sarpy County.

Another school choice option exercised by thousands of Nebraska families is public option enrollment. Public option enrollment enables a student to attend a different public school than the one in which they live. If a public school accepts these option enrollment students, the new school receives a payment equal to the average cost of educating a public school student in Nebraska, which is over $15,000. Nebraska taxpayers spend over $100 million every year for this school choice program.

In other words, parents can choose their child's school if they can afford to pay tuition at a non-public school or purchase a home in a school district of their choice, or if they are able to take advantage of the public school option enrollment program. However, for too many of Nebraska's children these options are not available – their parents can't afford to pay tuition or buy a home in a different neighborhood or school district or option enrollment isn't available because a school district has capped enrollment.

Low-income students aren't afforded the same options that their middle class peers can access. Too many students – especially low-income students – across Nebraska are attending a school that does not meet their needs and in which they are not finding success. That is why the Governor and the Legislature established a scholarship program – so parents have the freedom to choose the school that best meets the needs of their children.

Every year the very existence of non-public or private schools save Nebraska taxpayers over $540 million dollars. It is undeniably in Nebraska's interest to ensure all schools, public and non-public, prosper and help every child rich or poor reach their full potential.