CV NEWS FEED // Catholics and others in Michigan are pressing for the passage of school choice legislation vetoed last year by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, D-MI.
Greg Brock, a longtime state and national school choice advocate and parishioner at St. Patrick Catholic Church in Ada, MI, says that the proposed legislation is needed “now more than ever.”
“It’s time to give Michigan’s Catholic parents real choices for their children’s education,” Brock told CatholicVote Thursday.
Catholics interested in learning more about the two petitions titled Let MI Kids Learn can find them here.
Brock pointed to a quotation from Pope St. John Paul II as part of the inspiration behind his advocacy for the petitions:
“All men and women – and all children – have a right to education,” the late Holy Father said:
Closely linked to this right to education is the right of parents, of families, to choose according to their convictions the kind of education and the model of school which they wish for their children. Related as well is the no less sacred right of religious freedom.
“Let MI Kids Learn” represents two proposals to “put parents in charge of their children’s education,” Brock explained:
The first proposal will create Educational Opportunity Scholarships for up to nearly $10,000 (per child, per school year) for eligible students to pay for tutoring, training, and other educational services.
The second proposal provides tax credits for individuals and businesses who contribute to the scholarship funds.
These scholarships will allow parents to choose the best school for their children – one that will meet their children’s academic needs and respect the teachings of their faith and their family’s moral values.
“Families with annual income up to nearly $100,000 will be eligible for these scholarships, as well as any family – regardless of income – with foster children or those with special needs,” Brock said.
Parents’ rights groups and advocates of school choice feel especially confident in the proposals given their recent support among lawmakers in Michigan. Gov. Whitmer, a Democrat and opponent of school choice, has made herself an obstacle, but advocates believe they will be able to overcome her opposition this time around.
“These proposals already passed both houses of the Legislature in 2021, but Governor Whitmer vetoed them,” Brock explained. “With these petitions, the legislature can enact these two proposals into law in 2022 without the governor’s approval.”
Brock described the petitions as Michigan parents’ “one chance for real school choice,” and he is appealing to all sympathetic Americans to take action immediately in two ways:
1) Go to www.LetMIKidsLearn.com to find out how to sign and support these petitions for educational choice.
2) Contact your parish or Catholic school today to find out how you can sign the Let MI Kids Learn petitions.