Mike Winstead
@MCS_Director
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Joined August 2015
Bad news for all those past voucher lobby memos pointing to Florida NAEP as a reason other states need Florida-style vouchers.
BREAKING: Florida reading, math scores fall to lowest mark in more than 20 years on nation's report card. The achievement gap and the % of 8th graders reading below a “basic” level was the lowest in the test’s history. My latest for @OrlandoSentinel:
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For the first time ever, Tennessee scored above the national average on all 4th and 8th grade NAEP Assessments. One would expect the Governor to be out touting this accomplishment. Not happening because it doesn't support the voucher legislation. https://t.co/pnlqq6vvHs
chalkbeat.org
Tennessee students held their ground on a major national test in a year when average student test scores declined nationwide.
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MCS is hosting a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony and Open House! Please join us for a short opening ceremony followed by an opportunity to tour our newly renovated space. #wearemaryville
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Legislators will say, "we've put safeguards in our voucher bill to control future costs." Those "safeguards" will quickly be removed. A vote for this voucher bill is a vote for universal vouchers with no caps on the number of voucher students and no income limits.
Arizona has had a voucher program since 2011. In 2022, it went universal. In the 2 years since, the cost has gone from $65 million to next year’s $950 million. It exploded the state budget and has bilked money from public ed. Schools have been closed- now teachers are being fired
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Bluntly put, voucher advocates are afraid of the standardized tests that public school kids take. Scared to death. Reason being- their results stink.
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The financial aspect of vouchers is frightening.
Someone is going to have to explain to me one day how this (voucher schemes) ever became a “conservative” cause. Nothing fiscally conservative about it. The fiscal note will explode TN’s budget.
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“Ghost students” in a voucher scheme that’s already busted Arizona’s budget.
Today we announced major indictments in the ESA program. This program is ripe for abuse, and the Legislature needs to design a better program.
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Here is what is really happening behind the scenes with vouchers. “They are bending the will of the people…” These are innocent children. Leave them out of your dirty politics. Where are your ethics?
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If vouchers were even a tenth as popular as their Right-wing lobbyists claim, none of these millions $$ and none of these threats would be necessary.
REVEALED: Secret recording shows school voucher proponent talking of 'public hangings' of lawmakers https://t.co/zPCzXaRcoK
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No principles at all. Fleecing taxpayers to fund private schools. That’s it, it’s that simple. Won’t even benefit private school parents- tuitions will go up and they’ll be pulling out of pocket as much or more than they are now. You’re being hosed.
A leader in the TN chapter of Betsy DeVos’s voucher lobby group previewed the billionaire-backed “public hanging” strategy of forcing voucher votes. Now playing out in TN, TX, and across the country.
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So true. A parent of a 3rd public school student who does not demonstrate proficiency on the state test has to jump through hoops in order for the child to be promoted to 4th grade. That same parent can take a voucher and enroll the child in 4th grade in private school with ease.
Lundberg... "Parents are Outsiders" Think about this... The Literacy Success Act took retention decisions out of the hands of parents and school staff. Where is parent choice there? Where does that responsibility push parents, students, and schools?
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The things that have been wrapped up with vouchers border on the line of unethical. Issues that have been discussed at length will only be passed if vouchers are also passed, and the bottom line is none of it is what’s best for our Tennessee students!
chalkbeat.org
New school choice legislation from House leaders devotes more pages to changing public school policies than to creating a statewide school voucher program in Tennessee.
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The $345 million annual price tag is a “conservative” estimate. In Arizona, a similar universal vouchers bill has ballooned to nearly a $1 Billion price tag.
@WKRN The Tennessee Fiscal Review Committee’s Analysis: “The estimated annual growth in the program is conservative due to a limited amount of data from other states with similar programs and the inability to establish participation trends in those programs.”
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“This bill was dropped in our lap last night at 5 o’clock. We have not had the proper time to vet this bill, to go through it. There’s a lot of unanswered questions.” — Rep. Todd Warner, R-Chapel Hill, who voted no. (3 of 3)
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Celebrating Public Schools Week! 📚🍎 Huge shoutout to our dedicated school districts and incredible teachers for their unwavering commitment to education. 🏫 Thank you for shaping the future and empowering our students! 🙌👩🏫👨🎓 #PublicSchoolsWeek
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Gov. Bill Lee’s proposal to expand school vouchers would offer $7,075 in state funds per participant to pay for the costs of attending private school. That is more than the state’s per-student contribution in more than one third of school districts.
wpln.org
Under the proposal, Tennessee would spend over $2,000 more on each voucher than the average student in Metro Nashville Public Schools and Williamson County Schools.
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