Scholarship Tax Credits Work!

Today I came across an article from the Providence Journal.  The article told the story of a girl who, along with her parents, are refugees in the US from the civil war in Liberia.  After doing poorly in the local school she received a tax credit scholarship to go to a Catholic High School where she thrived.  She is one of 278 students to receive one of the scholarships in the program's first year.  

This scholarship tax credit program in Delaware has many of the same features that previous legislation in Missouri sought to enact.  It is very frustrating that this option is not out there for low income Missouri students who are often trapped in failing and unaccredited schools.  I dare any of the opponents of scholarship tax credits in Missouri, including Jay Nixon, to look this girl and her family in the eyes and tell them that her daughter should not have had this opportunity. 

This is just one example of how scholarship tax credits really work.  They are not always intended to help wealthy kids pay for private school.  They are, in fact, targeted at low income students who can thrive if given the opportunity to move out of the local schools.  Missouri legislators should make this option available to low income and special needs children in Missouri in the 2009 legislative session.