March 2, 2023 Press Release

Arkansas House of Representatives Betrays Arkansas Schools, Votes to Defund Public Education with an Unproven Voucher Scam

LITTLE ROCK - State Representatives in the Arkansas Legislature approved Governor Sarah Sanders’s LEARNS scam. Three Republicans joined all Democratic members in opposition to the bill. 

Minority Leader Tippi McCullough (D-Little Rock), a veteran teacher, asked her Republican colleagues why they drafted LEARNS “behind closed doors”:

“I taught in nearly every type of school in Arkansas for over three decades – public, private, rural, urban, small, medium, and large. No one chose to reach out and work with me — or anyone in our caucus. This bill is not right for Arkansas.  

Expert after expert tells us the truth — this bill will dismantle and defund our public school system. It will threaten our school districts. Its purported benefits will not reach your students in greatest need. It tells teachers: ‘you can have your overdue raise, but we will weaken your workplace protections and devalue your experience’. That’s a slap in the face to educators. As is calling them liars.” 

Representative Tara Shephard (D-Little Rock) reminded the chamber that she was on the board of the Little Rock School District when the Department of Education took state control:

“The state told us, ‘we will transform the Little Rock School District based on these bold actions. You can’t do it. Our plans are better.’ You know what happened to my district, which is possibly going to happen to some of your districts? Two of my high schools closed – schools that were at the heart of my community. This bold action that the state tried to take didn’t end well for schools in my district.” 

Representative Vivian Flowers (D-Pine Bluff), whose South Arkansas district has seen years and years of failed state takeovers and consolidation, told the chamber that LEARNS is not a public education bill and will further threaten children in our schools:

“These disparities, these barriers for public schools do not make this bill a public school bill. It further challenges our already challenged public schools. It puts in harm's way those schools that are doing okay and those that are doing well. You have to ask yourself, why not create some sort of cap if we want to protect our schools? Why not do it?...

How do you go from 1.5% to 3% to 100% eligibility [for vouchers]? And how in the world do you think that with 100% eligibility and no caps, that that is not going to affect our schools?

Anyone who thinks that this is going to be of benefit to minority schools, to the Delta: It will not end the disparities that have existed for years that have affected our schools, that have closed our schools. This will not help us.” 

Representative Denise Garner (D-Fayetteville), a retired Nurse Practitioner, questioned the absence of proven education solutions in favor of untested vouchers:

“With the passage of this bill, we will implement one of the largest clinical trials affecting our children’s lives. We can and must do better than this for our children, Their lives depend on it. Vouchers don’t work, unless we are trying to skirt accountability and transparency, undermine the public schools, or fund discrimination.”

Representative Joy Springer (D-Little Rock), a former member of the Little Rock School Board, noted that LEARNS fails constitutional obligations to provide a fair and equitable education to children:

“This bill does not address the state's responsibility to provide a suitable, efficient school funding system. ‘Choice’ is what I heard. Funding of education is based upon ‘choice.’ Who will be monitoring the state’s application of SB294? We already know what happens when the foxes are allowed to monitor the hen house.”

Republican members representing districts as diverse as North Little Rock (Carlton Wing), West Little Rock (Keith Brooks), Van Buren and Alma (Charlene Fite), Malvern (Rick McClure), Mayflower (David Ray), Smackover (Sonia Barker), and Rogers and Garfield (Brit McKenzie) spoke in favor of the voucher scheme. Each of their seats will be on the ballot in November 2024. 

The bill is expected to be heard in the Senate Education Committee Monday.