For certain kids, there is not. And Molnar, an opponent of existing voucher proposals, suggests the quality of the schools students switch to has a large impact on their performance. If parents become more engaged in the schools, if kids are happier to go to school, those are benefits. A primary argument of conservatives is that vouchers will engender improvement in existing public schools by forcing them to improve or risk losing their funds. But teachers' organizations, among other groups, are solidly lined up against vouchers, saying the money should be used to improve existing public schools instead of creating new ones.
Vouchers draw more money away from public schools and in so doing they do more harm than good.
Then there are questions about the administration of the money set aside for voucher programs. And an earlier state audit, frequently cited by voucher opponents showed students using their public funds for taxi fares to and from their new schools, an expense that has since been eliminated. Opponents of vouchers say the system also provides no guarantees that students in poor public schools will be admitted at more desirable private schools. They select the student. They will turn around students who they believe present behavior problems, and they will turn around kids who they believe will not be able to reach their performance level.