Voters will head to the polls in Utah on Tuesday to decide on a landmark school-choice plan. Referendum 1 would make all families eligible to receive $500 to $3,000 from the state per child per year, for private education. It would be the most comprehensive school-choice program in the nation.
In an Oct. 17 press conference, Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. said he was joining Republican leaders in calling for support for school choice "as a tool to meet Utah's rapidly growing student population."
Candi Cushman, education analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said, "This program would become one of the first in the nation to give all families, regardless of income, a chance to apply for a school-choice scholarship. That would put incredible power in the hands of the parents to make the best education choices for their children — and would set a very important precedent for the rest of the nation."
