Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice argues that the lack of school choice primarily negatively impacts low-income minority students, stating that "who's stuck in failing neighborhood schools? Poor kids. A lot of them minority kids."
Condoleezza Rice, the former Secretary of State for George W. Bush, recently sparked a debate by arguing that school choice is a race issue. In a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institution, Rice stated that the lack of school freedom primarily affects low-income minority students.
"So are you for school choice or not? We already have a choice system in education," Rice said. "If you are of means, you will move to a district where the schools are good and the houses are expensive, like Palo Alto, California."
School Choice: A Race Issue, Argues Condoleezza Rice
"If you’re really wealthy, you will send your kids to private school. So who’s stuck in failing neighborhood schools? Poor kids. A lot of them minority kids."
Rice argued that not having school choice negatively impacts low-income families by regulating them to underfunded school districts.
School Choice: A Race Issue, Argues Condoleezza Rice
"How can you say you’re for civil rights, how can you say you’re for the poor when you’re condemning those children to not being able to read?" Rice said. "By the time they’re in third grade, they’re never going to read."
According to the U.S. Department of Education's National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as "The Nation's Report Card," roughly one-third of American fourth graders read at or below the basic level. These rates are often even lower among low-income and minority students.
School Choice: A Race Issue, Argues Condoleezza Rice
"If you want to say that school choice and vouchers and charter schools are destroying the public schools, fine, you write that editorial in the Washington Post," Rice said in the now-viral video. "But then don’t send your kids to Sidwell Friends [an elite Washington, D.C., private school]."
School choice has gained popularity in recent years, with 11 states passing universal school choice. Many states have enacted Education Savings Accounts, which enable parents to use public funds to cover various education expenses, including private school tuition, instructional materials, and homeschooling costs.
School Choice: A Race Issue, Argues Condoleezza Rice
Proponents of school choice argue that it would provide equitable opportunity for all students, despite income levels and race, and that the overall education level increases as a result.
Opponents of school choice, like the National Education Association, say that voucher programs rarely provide the entire cost for a private school and remove much-needed funding for public schools.
The debate over school choice is likely to continue as more states consider expanding school choice options.
