School Vouchers and Education Advocacy: Processes of Political and Community Engagement

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 5:25 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Policy and Competition in Private School Choice (Table 9)

Abstract

While prior research has shown that school voucher programs produce mixed academic outcomes and further exacerbate racial segregation in schools, these programs have nonetheless expanded rapidly across the United States and in the South in recent years. This study seeks to understand how education advocates in the South have worked - successfully or unsuccessfully - to challenge school voucher expansion. In qualitative, semi-structured interviews, participants discussed key themes such as the role of political convergence, powerbuilding within communities, and harm mitigation in states where school vouchers were expanded. Findings illustrate the power of processes like investing in authentic community engagement, leveraging community voices and knowledge and understanding the political landscape, critical factors for education advocacy in the South.

Authors

• Darian A. Burns, Southern Education Foundation

• Tabitha Reynolds Hoang, Southern Education Foundation

• Max Altman, Southern Education Foundation

• Fred A. Jones, Southern Education Foundation