WASHINGTON, June 27 (UPI) -- Reactions were mixed to Thursday's Supreme Court ruling upholding the constitutionality of publicly funded school vouchers for religious education.
President Bush was among the decision's fans, saying, "This landmark ruling is a victory for parents and children throughout America."
Others sharply attacked the ruling.
"Today's decision is bad for education and bad for religious freedom," said Steven Shapiro, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union. "Today's decision is not the last word, however. Fortunately, the American public appears much less willing than the Court to use taxpayer dollars to fund religious indoctrination."
Thursday's 5-4 ruling was the first time in the nation's history that the Supreme Court had directly supported public funding of religious schools.
Those who support vouchers called the ruling a "great victory" and the beginning of a bright new day in education.
Opponents called it a disaster that would help suck needed dollars from public schools and fail to educate anyone.
The court approved a pilot school voucher program in Cleveland.
"Today's historic decision is a great victory for parents and children across America, particularly for many minority, low-income students who have been trapped in failing public schools," Attorney General John Ashcroft said in a statement.
Paul E. Peterson, director of the Kennedy School's Program on Education Policy and Governance at Harvard, was equally optimistic.
"Private schools have less disorder, class size is smaller, there is more homework, there is better communication with parents and we found test scores for black kids, after three years, go up three to four grade levels," Peterson said. "We did not see a similar gain for the white students."
Texas Public Policy Foundation President and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Judson also issued a statement in praise of the Supreme Court decision.
"This is a great day for all parents and children; they have received emancipation from unsafe, failing schools," Judson said.
Other commentators, such as Sandra Feldman, president of the American Federation of Teachers, were less sanguine.
"We disagree with today's Supreme Court ruling," Feldman said. "Vouchers are bad education policy, and we will continue to fight efforts to introduce them into public education. Our nation's commitment to public education is longstanding, built upon the principle of open and equal access for all our children. This decision undercuts that principle and commitment.
"If this decision brings new efforts to enact voucher legislation," she added, "we will fight these efforts. But we will also work ... to ensure that private schools that receive public funds are held accountable -- just as public schools are."
Barry Lynn, president of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said, "The Supreme Court has taken a wrecking ball to the wall of separation between church and state. This is clearly the worst church-state decision in the past 50 years."
Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, was equally critical.
"In what may be the most devastating decision about public schools and religious liberty in decades," Saperstein said, "the U.S. Supreme Court today overturned lower court decisions finding school voucher programs unconstitutional. The legal battles over the separation of church and state and the constitutionality of voucher programs will continue to be fought in the years to come, but the battle for our public schools begins anew today. Sadly, today's decision undermines the American traditions of democracy and religious liberty that have made our nation unique."
Margaret Hopkins, vice chairman of the Cleveland School Board, said, "While vouchers are intended for families with limited resources, 40 percent of the enrollees in the last school year were from families above the poverty level and 25 percent of new voucher students were previously enrolled in private schools. Vouchers have taken scarce dollars away from our public schools and have done nothing for our 76,000 students. Where are the benefits to Cleveland's public school children from Ohio's voucher program?"
