Act Fast: Tell Your Commissioner to Oppose Vouchers

The fight to oppose Gov. Bill Lee’s Voucher Scam is going to the Montgomery County Commission floor on Monday night at 6:00 PM. Commissioner Lisa Prichard is bringing a resolution opposing vouchers up for a vote.

This follows successful resolutions being passed by Clarksville City County and CMC School Board. A trifecta would send a strong message to our legislators in Nashville that we expect to support public schools and not defund them.

I am asking that you email your county commissioner asking them to support Commissioner Prichard’s resolution opposing vouchers prior to the meeting on Monday. You can look up your commission district here. Additionally please attend the meeting at the Historic Courthouse downtown, arriving at 5:45 pm.

Folks can sign up to speak on this resolution by completing the steps on this site.

Commissioner Emails:

district1@mcgtn.net, district2@mcgtn.net, district3@mcgtn.net, district4@mcgtn.net, district5@mcgtn.net, district6@mcgtn.net, district7@mcgtn.net, district8@mcgtn.net, district9@mcgtn.net, district10@mcgtn.net, district11@mcgtn.net, district12@mcgtn.net, district13@mcgtn.net, district14@mcgtn.net, district15@mcgtn.net, district16@mcgtn.net, district17@mcgtn.net, district18@mcgtn.net, district19@mcgtn.net, district20@mcgtn.net, district21@mcgtn.net

Sample Email:

Commissioner,

On Monday your body is going to consider a resolution opposing a voucher program for private schools in Tennessee. I ask that you vote for this resolution and stand against any effort to defund public education. Vouchers in conjunction with the TISA school funding formula will divert money away from Clarksville Montgomery County Schools and send those funds to private schools not held to the same standards. The reduction in funding for schools will make it harder for our county to keep pace with rapid population growth. It could also result in teachers being laid off, a reduction in bus routes, and fewer resources and staff to support youth sports.

Under this new system families that receive vouchers will get over $7,000 to go to a private school their child may be admitted to. The school system will lose roughly the same amount of money for every student that disenrolls for the year regardless of whether the student remains in the private school. It’s important to note that vouchers are not for every child as the Tennessee Constitution requires our state to serve, it’s only for the kids that are admitted by the private institution.

Multiple county commissions and school boards in rural and suburbanTennessee have passed similar resolutions supporting public schools and opposing vouchers. Montgomery County has the opportunity to join this chorus.

This IS a county issue and many legislators are basing their decisions off the positions of local elected bodies. You have a role to serve in this important statewide discussion. If vouchers pass it could greatly impact the financial health of our county, and it could force you and your fellow commissioners to make even harder decisions to shore up public education in Montgomery County.

I urge you to vote in favor of this resolution for your county, for our students, our teachers, and for our future.