SHEBOYGAN COUNTY, WI (WHBL) - Local private schools part of the state’s Parental Choice program wishes Governor Walker’s proposed changes were slightly different.
Governor Walker’s budget proposes lifting the one-thousand voucher cap for those wanting to attend a private school but cannot afford it.
Jay Lindsey, Principal at St. John Lutheran School of Plymouth, says the plan would restrict when students from a private school could be eligible for a voucher. "Say somebody is in a private school currently and wants to stay there but qualifies for the program; well if there kid is in like second or third grade, under the new rules they wouldn’t be allowed to do that," says Lindsey.
Paul Gnan, executive director of Sheboygan Lutheran High School, says he would like to see higher funding levels for high school student vouchers, matching those given in the Milwaukee area. "I would also like to see the income levels change, that it would be the same as Milwaukee and Racine parental choice. I didn’t know that poverty changes just because you weren’t in the city," says Gnan.
Both say they will be waiting and watching to see how this proposal will be finalized as the budget is debated.