And what about the children that don't/can't leave failing schools? Apparently he doesn't give a crap about them. I truly believe the republican agenda represents the utmost in greed and evil, and it saddens me that so many are blind to this.

Republican + Teabagger equals MINDLESS, BRAINWASHED, IDIOT. The one's that run & the one's that vote for them.

Angie...Sandra.....must be AEA members and following orders from Mabry to attack their legislators in church.

Unfortunately we can't enact a law for parental responsibiliy.That is the root of failing schools and poverty rates that haven't changed since the "war on poverty" began.If anything they have increased.Being poor is not an excuse for a parent's failure to demand their child do their homework and respect their teachers.Maybe....and I say maybe,this will give poor kids WITH parents who act like parents a chance to get their kids a shot at an education away from the thug mentality of their peers.Perhaps as new businesses come to the state contributions to the scholarship fund could be part of the incentive packages.

Our legislators were used as Barney Fife stooges to push through the goals of big corporations who want to continue the expansion of Walmart type charter schools. Low standards, low wages, and high profits are the goals, with the profits of hard-working taxpayers going out of state to billionaire owners.

Part of the problem is "No Child Left Behind" and all of the assessments that go along with it. My kids have 10 times the homework that I had as a child, they go to school more days AND their lunch program (thanks to President Reagan) is the pits. I went to school with plenty of poor people whose children didn't fail and they didn't have the market cornered on lack of discipline by a long shot. There were and are plenty of middle and upper class students who wouldn't know discipline at home if it hit them in the head. There was also not a stigma attached to those who were not academically inclined. Everyone wasn't expected to go to college, but everyone had the opportunity to work toward a higher education or a trade.

I am ashamed to have once been considered a Republican but I did not vote for any the last few elections. Parents don't let your children enter education for a career here in Alabama !

The push toward Charter Schools is purely an effort to privatize education, nothing more. Bob Riley and his cronies are the investors behind the Charter Schools that eventually will prevail under this administration. They are the only ones to benefit. And as to the comment about future business expansion in Alabama, I ask, why do you think businesses will relocate here with an under-educated population. This is an economic disaster for the state.

And I totally agree with Sandra.

Please check out Emily Smultz (our education policy director), The School Turnaround Group Mass Institue,(where Emily Smultz worked) (Her stint in Rhode Island) This company has been paid 75 million dollars by some states to turn around schools), Michelle Rhee and Students First organization,(also connected to Emily Smultz) This is where the education system in Alabama is heading. It is definitelly an effort to privatize education! And yes there are big bucks for those involved.

No problem if students are genuinely put first! However, spending millions of dollars for out of state "consultants" and giving tax breaks to big corporations instead of spending on the schools is not right! I know the economy is in bad shape but if the government leaders would do their jobs instead of trying to please "big money" and actually read some of the legislation, that would help!

To deny gain from this act, you must believe private schools are not superior in achievement to a vast segment of public schools. When private schools fail, they go out of business. Also, this is not a teacher issue. Generally teachers are not the problem. Most all teachers are excellent and virtually all will rise to well-founded expectations. Teachers are however confined and constrained by deficient education administration, management and oversight induced unworkable policies flowing down from “on high”. Below is revised from yesterday's forum on this subject, please consider:

1. Without "failing" public [read government] schools, there is no source of students for this system. Educators in failing schools provide the only source fueling the need solution this legislation addresses. Eliminate failing schools and the system, as written, dies a natural death. Mission accomplished.

2. For each student a "failing" school loses, the gaining public school gets their $ allocation with each student gained; or, private school gets up to 80% of the allocation for each. The burden on the failing school is lessened by one, ten or 50 or more students, yet the “failing” public school [or system] retains 20% of the funding. Do less with more $. Seems like a way to pay to dig out. By the way, this is at 20% reduction in state [read taxpayers] cost per participant.

3. Failing schools improve or die. With the money in place, the marketplace will fill the need. There is no net loss, only gain.

4. Most private/parochial/Christian schools will likely find 80% of state funding levels will be about a 30% increase over predominant tuition rates; and, on par with high school rates. Private schools will aggressively compete for students and the funding by promoting and delivering excellence. Certainly we will realize greater achievement than now.

5. Besides it being patently obvious; Christian principles, and the principles of our nation, dictate accommodating those in need. It is who we are. We should jettison the pessimism and have every confidence private facilities will cope with the needs and return excellence. It is inaccurate to say private schools don’t already deal with ADD, ADHD, dyslexia, Asperger's syndrome, discipline, behavioral and all other such problems and situations now. Besides, failure to accommodate and deal with these challenges will assure that two thirds of the posters on this forum will beat everybody to the courthouse steps to assure our/their “values” are ENFORCED.

6. With the accomplishment rate of current public school/system administrators, it is highly inappropriate to charge private facilities with making up 100%, in one fail swath, for all of the presently existing failures and shortcomings.

My bet, adopting this will put every “eligible” participant in position to change their life and leave behind 50% or less graduation rates; and, “graduation” without the skills to read, write and do basic math. The base of education will broaden. Self-esteem will grow, moral values fostered and generational cycles of poverty and illiteracy will begin being reversed. With that done, then we proceed to statewide charter schools. After that, parent directed vouchers steering education funds to the school/s of parent’s choice irrespective of race, creed or color and so on. With this in place competition will dictate increased levels of excellence from and by all. We will never meet perfection, but odds are we will improve vastly! Please don’t cry “it doesn’t fix everything” while pointing at some heartbreak. Nothing fixes everything, but we can do exponentially better!!

Public education should to end up serving something like around 50% or so of students. Ahhhhh, there it is!!! That last sentence is, on the Big-Ed side, what this is $quibble$ is all about. Big-Ed and all its elements do not want to share the mission or control; nor, the $resources$ and ultimately the power. Free market competition in education will improve the product, just like the break-up of Bell Telephone a couple of generations ago. What we have now is the education equivalent of an old rotary dial wire only phone. Big-Ed, be advised the camel’s nose is now under the tent, and your monopoly is in the process of being broken-up. It’s just a matter of time, market competition and American ingenuity will solve the problems with or without you. So please join us.

I don't think teachers are against private or charter schools. Teachers want the best for students and want them to have the best education possible; however, teachers do not want money taken away from their county, schools, etc., and given to charter schools. I take that back. I don't even think teachers would mind money being taken away from their county and schools iffffffff their county and schools were funded sufficiently. When schools can't afford textbooks,library books and programs, equipement, computers, and other technology that their students need to have the quality education that will prepare them for the "real world", it's hard to be excited about these schools coming in and taking part of your already limited funding. Teachers are speaking up for their students, and I would not expect anything less from them.

Can we call the parties that did this liars? Someone didn't have Ethics like I did.

How senators and representatives will get the tax credits, and how many have more than one child. These are the ones who benefit from this. Just watch and see.

Great Points, Kenneth.

If our schools were funded like they should be then there would not be a problem but they are not. So the again the children suffer and the politician don't care it is a game to them lets see what they can do to make us the people suffer more either by doing nothing or by going behind closed doors and doing only for them. If you placed term limits on them and make them work for us like they are supposed too then we would be better off by but we don't we continue to reap what we sow.

well.... you hit the nail on the head!!!!! Sorry parents raise sorry kids it does not matter where they go to school!! Sorry has become a lifestyle to be proud of in this country!! You can throw all the money you want to to public schools but until you change the public it is useless. Public schools already get my tax dollars and we go to private school, just like they get tax dollars from every family at our school. How is that fair?? More power to the good parents who now have a chance to help their kids get away from the crap.

Robin, if you don't think our education system is being funded well enough, you should drive down Bethel Road in Hartselle and look at the new High School.

VOTE LIBERTARIAN!!

Thomas that schoolis coming from a large loan and you know it. Not all comes from the tax payer! I hope Hartselle can pay it back without higher taxes and alchol, GOOD LUCK!