As debate over funding for the LA GATOR scholarship program gets underway in the legislature, one poll indicates that the program is popular among Louisiana voters. Erin Bendily, the senior vice president of the Pelican Institute, says its first quarter Pelican Pulse Poll shows that 61% support the program.
“What the results have shown, consistently, is that families want options. And they overwhelmingly support the LA GATOR program, Bendily said.
The LA Scholarship program provides state dollars to an eligible family to pay for nonpublic school tuition, or it can go towards tutoring, textbooks, dual enrollment courses and uniforms.
Bendily says the biggest benefit to the LA GATOR program is that it puts parents squarely in control of their children’s education.
“Really, it truly does empower families. It puts them in the driver’s seat to choose what’s best works for their child’s unique needs,” Bendily said.
Currently, the LA GATOR program is funded at $44 million and serves about 5,600 students, mostly low-income families that were involved in the state’s previous voucher program.
Governor Landry wants to double the program’s funding to $88 million, but legislative leaders are concerned about growing a program that they might not be able to fully fund in the future. But Bendily says interest in the program is high as families want more choices on how to educate their children.
“We have thousands of students on the waitlist right now that are just waiting for the funding to be able to be allocated to this program, just as easily as we fund the students when they enter a government-run school,” Bendily explained.
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