Left Cries Foul Over Christian School’s Right To Vouchers

[IAMX 3,055]

In light of vouchers increasing in popularity, the left are trying a new attack method.. try and force private schools under the same rules as public schools.

 

A Christian school defended its religious admissions policies after Democrats labeled it as a school that discriminates against LGBT students during Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos’ congressional hearing.

The Lighthouse Christian Academy of Bloomington, Ind. has been the center of the debate about school choice ever since Senate Democrats claimed that the school discriminated against LGBT students, according to an AP report. Democrats used the school as an example in their arguments against DeVos over whether or not religious schools like Lighthouse should receive money from government vouchers if they are perceived to have discriminatory policies.

Lighthouse’s admissions brochure lists several lifestyle behaviors they say are prohibited according to the Bible. The school reserves the right to deny admission to any student whose home life includes, among other things:

Heterosexual activity outside of one man-one-woman marriage. For example, premarital sex, cohabitation, or adultery (John 8:1-11; I Corinthians 6:9-20; Hebrews 13:4);

Homosexual or bisexual activity or any form of sexual immorality (Romans 1:21-27; I Corinthians 6:9-20);

Practicing alternate gender identity or any other identity or behavior that violates God’s ordained distinctions between the two sexes, male and female (Genesis 1:26-27; Deuteronomy 22:5);

Lighthouse claims that they have never denied admission to a student based on sexual orientation, although they stand by their right to operate according to their policies.

Thirty states, including Indiana, use some form of tax funds for school choice programs. None of those states that use vouchers prohibit admissions policies that discriminate based on sexual orientation or gender identity, according to a study by Suzanne Eckes, a professor at Indiana University.

Legal and policy experts across the country defended Lighthouse’s right to operate according to its stated religious beliefs, including the school’s attorney and spokesman Brian Bailey.

“Parents are free to choose which school best comports with their religious convictions,” Bailey said. “For a real choice and thus real liberty to exist, the government may not impose its own orthodoxy and homogenize all schools to conform to politically correct attitudes and ideologies.”

http://dailycaller.com/2017/06/19/left-cries-foul-over-christian-schools-right-to-vouchers/

 

Of course.. they seem to miss the point of private school. It's not all-inclusive and for everyone -- some schools are religious, some special needs, and so on. That's the freedom parents have, which is commendable.

 

I'm all for having public funding for schools to help the financially disadvantaged (this is much preferred), but if the left want to get dictatorial, I say pull funds completely from education and force everyone to pay for their own schooling.

[smilesammich 10,727]

public education should be accessible to all and funded with public tax dollars. under no circumstance should religious institutions of education receive public funds. vouchers as 'freedom' or 'choice' is a myth. if you want your kid to go to church school, send them there. if you can't afford it, petition your church to take up an offering for your kid's tuition. keep religion out of public education.

 

'force everyone to pay for their own schooling' ...what are taxes?

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

5 minutes ago, smilesammich said:

public education should be accessible to all and funded with public tax dollars. under no circumstance should religious institutions of education receive public funds. vouchers as 'freedom' or 'choice' is a myth. if you want your kid to go to church school, send them there. if you can't afford it, petition your church to take up an offering for your kid's tuition. keep religion out of public education.

 

'force everyone to pay for their own schooling' ...what are taxes?

I totally agree with this actually. I think religious schools should not get any type of public funding at all. I do not want to pay for the funding of a school that I don't agree with their vision or school plan. I know a number schools do have scholarships for less financially capable families so they should not be using school vouchers. 

[-relo- 105]

10 minutes ago, smilesammich said:

public education should be accessible to all and funded with public tax dollars. under no circumstance should religious institutions of education receive public funds. vouchers as 'freedom' or 'choice' is a myth. if you want your kid to go to church school, send them there. if you can't afford it, petition your church to take up an offering for your kid's tuition. keep religion out of public education.

 

'force everyone to pay for their own schooling' ...what are taxes?

if good people that pay their taxes want their children taught properly, it should be their choice & not other peoples.

 

[smilesammich 10,727]

3 minutes ago, cyberfx1024 said:

I totally agree with this actually. I think religious schools should not get any type of public funding at all. I do not want to pay for the funding of a school that I don't agree with their vision or school plan. I know a number schools do have scholarships for less financially capable families so they should not be using school vouchers. 

+100

 

because, while this article is focusing on christian schools, i'm sure there are quite a few folks who would take issue if their 'freedom' or 'choice' of school was in a synagogue or mosque.

 

[smilesammich 10,727]

1 minute ago, -relo- said:

if good people that pay their taxes want their children taught properly, it should be their choice & not other peoples.

 

that's why public education is secular and must be kept that way. christians don't all agree on what constitutes 'proper' teaching let alone all the other religions. it's not like the voucher system creates a host of choices, the choices are still the same it's just opening up religious schools to receive taxpayer funding. which, imo is a big no no. 

[IAMX 3,055]

15 minutes ago, -relo- said:

if good people that pay their taxes want their children taught properly, it should be their choice & not other peoples.

 

Pretty much. The whole notion of paying twice for the same child's education is stupid. The left clearly have no issue with this given they prefer to be dictators of thought.

 

21 minutes ago, cyberfx1024 said:

I totally agree with this actually. I think religious schools should not get any type of public funding at all. I do not want to pay for the funding of a school that I don't agree with their vision or school plan. I know a number schools do have scholarships for less financially capable families so they should not be using school vouchers. 

The concept in these states is that your taxes goes into a pool of funds that allow parents to decide what school their kids go to. I think it's a fair use of one's tax funds instead of making them pay twice. Another alternative I'm for is write-off's/rebates for those who wind up paying for their childrens' private schools, recuperating the taxes they'd be paying into public school. It adds slightly more complication to tax season, but for more individual freedom it's worth it.

 

The pool of funds concept also funds people who can't afford to pay for school as well, so the left should be on board with this, but alas, they don't have the brain capacity to not to use government in a non-dictating fashion.. so the only thought process they have is to treat private schools like public. 

Edited June 20, 2017 by IAMX

[-relo- 105]

7 minutes ago, smilesammich said:

that's why public education is secular and must be kept that way. christians don't all agree on what constitutes 'proper' teaching let alone all the other religions. it's not like the voucher system creates a host of choices, the choices are still the same it's just opening up religious schools to receive taxpayer funding. which, imo is a big no no. 

the voucher system may not create a host of choices. but, it does provide options. the people wanting to use the vouchers are only making parental choices, they feel is in the best interest of their child. remember they pay taxes too.

[yuna628 9,646]

This is not a 'left' issue, and quite frankly there are many on the 'right' in particular even in the homeschool community that are very opposed to using public money for voucher programs that are then handed over to religious-based schools. There is a high amount of fraud in such type of voucher and charter programs. Public education is public, non-religious, and neutral - and we've had a few threads discussing incidents happening under these programs that we could all find common agreement. Our taxpaying dollars do not go to use services that we individually and specifically earmark. You'll find this is a common argument of homeschoolers (including secular homeschoolers) that share the concept that their blanket taxpaying dollars should not be going to fund education that they don't agree with and that includes school vouchers with religious doctrine differing from their own, and it's the same argument on the other side too. Libertarians further agree that school vouchers of this nature is downright wrong and leads to a great many problems between the state and private entities.

 

Churches and religious schools need to be responsible for their own problems and flock, instead of lining their pockets with the offering plate. Private schools too need to get off their exclusive club butts and stop looking for handouts while expecting there will not to be any oversight into what they teach while using public money.

 

 

 

 

Edited June 20, 2017 by yuna628

[smilesammich 10,727]

Just now, -relo- said:

the voucher system may not create a host of choices. but, it does provide options. the people wanting to use the vouchers are only making parental choices, they feel is in the best interest of their child. remember they pay taxes too.

options for who? as stated in the op, if you happen to have a kid that doesn't fit into the correct mold of the 'options' granted them, where's the choice? 

 

if you sincerely believe that parents should have full control over their tax dollars as concerns the type of education their children receive, then we have to dismantle public education all together. the next step logically is, i don't have children - why do i have to pay for them to go to school period..

[-relo- 105]

Just now, smilesammich said:

options for who? as stated in the op, if you happen to have a kid that doesn't fit into the correct mold of the 'options' granted them, where's the choice? 

 

if you sincerely believe that parents should have full control over their tax dollars as concerns the type of education their children receive, then we have to dismantle public education all together. the next step logically is, i don't have children - why do i have to pay for them to go to school period..

education options for the parents and their children. maybe one is more suitable to the family than another.

 

common weal

[smilesammich 10,727]

2 minutes ago, -relo- said:

education options for the parents and their children. maybe one is more suitable to the family than another.

 

common weal

but it all depends on your location and the existing schools, not this vast illusion of 'choice'

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

26 minutes ago, smilesammich said:

+100

 

because, while this article is focusing on christian schools, i'm sure there are quite a few folks who would take issue if their 'freedom' or 'choice' of school was in a synagogue or mosque.

 

That's pretty much exactly what I was thinking as well. I am Christian but I do not want to paying for some hard core Christian private school that like I grew up down the street from. 

[-relo- 105]

Just now, smilesammich said:

but it all depends on your location and the existing schools, not this vast illusion of 'choice'

transportation is another subject

[IAMX 3,055]

2 minutes ago, yuna628 said:

This is not a 'left' issue, and quite frankly there are many on the 'right' in particular even in the homeschool community that are very opposed to using public money for voucher programs that are then handed over to religious-based schools. There is a high amount of fraud in such type of voucher and charter programs. Public education is public, non-religious, and neutral - and we've had a few threads discussing incidents happening under these programs that we could all find common agreement. Our taxpaying dollars do not go to use services that we individually and specifically earmark. You'll find this is a common argument of homeschoolers (including secular homeschoolers) that share the concept that their blanket taxpaying dollars should not be going to fund education that they don't agree with and that includes school vouchers with religious doctrine differing from their own, and it's the same argument on the other side too. Libertarians further agree that school vouchers of this nature is downright wrong and leads to a great many problems between the state and private entities.

 

Churches and religious schools need to be responsible for their own problems and flock, instead of lining their pockets with the offering plate. Private schools too need to get off their exclusive club butts and stop looking for handouts while expecting there will not to be any oversight into what they teach while using public money.

 

 

 

 

I agree, if not for vouchers, then allow people to deduct their public school tax dollars and use them toward private school. Problem solved. Or better yet, remove all funds so no one gets handouts and choice goes completely to the parents as to where their kids go.

 

This is one of the areas I have rather liberal views on.. but the idea of a lack of choice is not liberal, it's authoritarian. Leftists today have completely changed from choice to authoritarianism. From reason, to tantrums and emotional tirades.

 

So if they can't be reasonable and work with people, and want to use government as a form of dictatorship, then just pull all funds, and if it means lazy people not working don't get to send their kids to school, so be it. Like many issues, I try and work with people to find a solution that can work for both sides, but if one side has zero compromise, then there's no point in working with them.