While many have focused on the program's positive impact on academic achievement, a recent Department of Education evaluation also studied how the program has affected students' educational experiences in other ways, including school safety and school climate. Past evaluations have reported that school safety was an important reason why families…

Despite growing evidence of the success of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program (DCOSP), its future beyond 2009-2010 remains uncertain. This spring, Congress included legislative language in the Omnibus Appropriations Act requiring that the DCOSP be reauthorized by Congress and authorized by the D.C. City Council before receiving new federal…

The purpose of this project is fourfold: to report on the levels of approval for key policy leaders, awareness about certain reforms and policies, and support for various policies and public proposals; to identify large gaps between positive and negative feelings toward leaders and policies; while recognizing limitations, to compare these levels…

The Washington, D.C. school system has a long history of poor academic achievement; however, over the past decade, the District of Columbia has made strides in offering families greater choice about which schools their children attend, thanks to a strong charter school law and the federally funded D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program. District…

The more than 500,000 children currently in foster care are among the most at-risk children in American society. Research shows that adults who were formerly in foster care are more likely than the general population to succumb to poor life outcomes. Many of these problems are at least in part a product of problems in the classroom, where foster…

In 2006, President Bush proposed the America's Opportunity Scholarships for Kids initiative in his budget request for the Department of Education. The plan would make $100 million available in competitive grant awards to provide scholarships to low income students in persistently failing public schools. Only low-income students attending public…

This analysis discusses a proposed education tax credit that includes: a parental choice credit, where parents receive dollar-for-dollar reduction in income tax liability up to $500 per child for tuition costs, and a scholarship credit, which raises funds for low-income children by allowing dollar-for-dollar reduction in income taxes up to $500…

Parental choice in education is growing. A dozen states and the District of Columbia provide a variety of private school choice programs. Forty states and the District of Columbia have enacted charter schools laws. A growing body of evidence suggests that parents of students participating in school choice programs are happier with their children's…