The education establishment predicted school choice wouldn't work and would drain public-school resources. They argued that more money is needed in a system that is already spending record amounts, but getting ever-lower returns on the public's investment. If a mutual fund were performing as poorly as public schools, a good financial advisor would recommend the client to sell and find a better investment. In Wisconsin, where school choice for low-income residents has been an option in some cities for more than seven years, and was affirmed on June 10 by the state supreme court, even when the choice is for religious schools, the results are beginning to come in. Dr. Howard Fuller, a former superintendent of the Milwaukee Public School system, says the magnitude of the improvements is so great he recommends the choice program be expanded to new cities.
Surveys also indicate widespread parental satisfaction and more stability in attendance patterns.
A newer school-choice program in Cleveland shows similar academic gains, as well as markedly improved parental and child satisfaction. In Milwaukee and Cleveland choice schools, academic achievement in several subjects improved dramatically after as little as three years in a new environment. Only the teachers' unions and the politicians who need their votes and campaign money are upset. Unable to deny the evidence of improvement, many have taken to distorting the research and attempting to shut down choice experiments. Prof. Lawrence Stedman of the State University of New York illustrated the depth of the education problem for the minority community trapped in failed public schools.