The Times and Democrat published this column by Randy Page, the chief of South Carolinians for Responsible Government (SCRG). It's all about how much money private schools supposedly save the state because they educate kids the state doesn't have to pay for. There is, of course, some truth to Page's argument: Private schools do provide a service to parents and students, and the state and local districts do not have to fund education for those children. And, sure, if all the private schools closed down at once and all private school and home-school students entered their local public schools, it would surely create some financial pressures on the public school system.
But, as usual, Page's numbers are grossly distorted. Prime example from the column:
Over 5,000 of the 6-year olds will enroll in independent or home schools. Their families will make a choice about the type and quality of instruction the children receive and, in the process, save over $56 million in taxpayers' money.
This is a blatant falsehood. It's as if Page does not understand fixed costs and basic overhead. The state, along with local districts and the federal government, may spend ON AVERAGE upwards of $11,000 per student in South Carolina. That in no way, however, means that each child literally costs the public system $11,000.
I have a child in elementary school in Spartanburg County School District 7. If an influx of 6-year-olds occurred, there would be some additional costs. But you could add 10 kindergartners to the mix without having to hire a new teacher or bring in a new principal or add a bus route -- or anything else that would amount to anything near an additional $11,000 per kid.
Again, it's as if Page and the SCRG folks don't understand how things work. My guess is that they know well enough but are trying to mislead the public. That's perhaps to be expected from a hardcore political advocacy group. What is disappointing is that one of our state's newspapers has given Page's misinformation campaign a louder voice. I understand, of course, that the op-ed pages are full of propaganda and questionable facts. Conservatives probably go crazy reading columns by Maureen Dowd or Paul Krugman, just as more liberal readers are ticked off by the writings of Cal Thomas or Walter Williams.
But when the issue at hand is our state's public education system -- and, indeed, our local school districts -- newspapers should perhaps hold the author to a bit higher standard of truthfulness. At the very least, it would be terrific to see the Times and Democrat, located in Orangeburg, put one of its reporters to the task of analyzing the numbers and logic Page puts forth. That would be a real service to readers and to the public at large.
If the newspapers don't do it, then it's up to public school leaders and others who care about the issue. They need to band together and put some energy to the task of setting the record straight.
