In November, Kentucky voters will be asked to approve a constitutional amendment on educational choice. This is a unique opportunity to advance the well-being of all Kentucky students and I encourage everyone to support it.
All of our neighboring states have educational choice programs that provide widespread opportunity for their students. Kentucky has none of these programs.
This is because the Kentucky Supreme Court has interpreted our state Constitution in a very narrow way, preventing the legislature from passing similar laws. In fact, the Court has ruled that any educational support for students outside of public schools is prohibited.
The good news is that Kentucky voters now have the opportunity to right this wrong. A “YES” vote on Amendment 2 supports giving the Kentucky General Assembly the ability to pass educational policies that support all students.
Opponents of Amendment 2 often paint a bleak picture of destructive policies that the legislature could theoretically adopt if the amendment is approved. They assert that Amendment 2 will destroy public education.
However, that has certainly not been the experience of the 48 states that have some form of educational choice. States like Ohio and Indiana, which have some of the oldest and most robust choice programs, boast public school student outcomes that surpass Kentucky’s.
Furthermore, the opponents’ claims run contrary to the laws that have already been passed in Kentucky, which the Supreme Court subsequently struck down.
The primary school-choice policy pursued by legislators and thwarted by the Court’s ruling was HB 563, passed in 2021 and strongly supported by the Catholic Conference. HB 563 provided a tax credit for donations to fund assistance based on financial need and required that a majority of the aid awarded go to high-need students.
The assistance awarded under this program could have been used for non-public school tuition, but also for many other educational needs. A student could be awarded funds to pay for online learning, tutoring, computers and software, testing fees, educational therapies, fees for dual-credit courses, among other needs.
These accounts would have met the needs of thousands of students and enhanced opportunities for students in non-public schools, public schools, or homeschools, all based on need.
And this would have been new educational funding raised through the tax credit program, not money redirected from existing education funding. In fact, the same year legislators passed HB 563, they provided over $100 million in new funding for public school systems.
Education is a justice issue. The state has an obligation to ensure that every student has access to a quality education, and to do that in a way that provides parents with, as St. Paul VI said, “true liberty in their choice of schools.”
There is no reason we should not have well-funded public schools alongside programs providing for other choices where there is a need. Amendment 2 will allow Kentucky to consider and adopt creative solutions to Kentucky’s educational challenges.
Jason Hall is the executive director of the Catholic Conference of Kentucky.