A survey by the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice polled a group of “school moms” who had at least one child in preschool, elementary school or high school and asked them several questions on the state of education in America. Some interesting findings from the survey:
• School moms were much more likely to favor charter schools than oppose them. When charter schools weren’t defined, 45% favored charters and only 19% opposed. When given a definition, the percentage of moms in favor of charters went up to 63%. For American adults without children in school, the numbers were almost identical. This is something that CER has been saying and seeing in our polling for a while. Last year, CER did an independent poll and found similar results in North Carolina, Tennessee, and Florida.
• Seven out of 10 school moms were in support of tax credits, 19% were opposed and 12% had no opinion. American adults similarly support tax credit scholarships.
• Close to two-thirds of school moms (65%) support education savings accounts (ESAs), a new type of school choice reform that allows parents to put a portion of their public school funding into a savings account for use for primary, secondary or post-secondary education needs One-quarter of school moms (25%) said they opposed ESAs. Less than one out of ten school moms (9%) did not express an opinion.
• When given the definition for a school voucher program, six out of ten American adults (60%) said they support the policy – up four points since last year. About one third, 32%, are opposed.
• When considering the various actions that could occur from a parent trigger policy, both groups supported a school choice option. One out of three school moms (32%) and one-fourth of non-schoolers (26%) say that offering a voucher or scholarship to enroll in another school was the best trigger outcome to serve affected students and families.