How private schools won

Tuesday, September 5, 2023:

Hey readers,

How was your long weekend? It's Izzie Ramirez, and here's what we're following today:

Up first: The fight to redirect public school funding.

In other news: Burning Man's 8-hour exodus, Jill Biden's positive test for Covid, and a possible reclassification for marijuana.

See you in your inbox tomorrow.

UP FIRST

Is public school as we know it ending?

Brittany Murray/MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images

Back to school means the return of heated education debates. Between decisions over everything from what curriculums should be taught to school shooter policies, public schools have their hands pretty full. On top of all that, though, is a continued effort from conservative "school choice" advocates to redirect public education funds to parents and private schools.

The lowdown: Pollsters find that parents still generally like their kids' schools, and most of the political opposition to public education comes from those without kids in the public school system.

School choice refers to policies and programs that let families use public money to access schools beyond their local options. Those alternatives include private schools, public charters, online school, homeschool, and magnet schools.
What makes someone pro-school choice varies from group to group. But in most cases, conservative parents who are fighting for school choice tend to do so under concerns around religion.
However, rulings about the separation of church and state are making what constitutes public education murky. The Supreme Court's case concerning an Oklahoma City charter school run by two Roman Catholic dioceses now poses certain risks to the wall separating church and state.
Thanks to school choice advocates, vouchers are on the rise. These vouchers are essentially public subsidies given to families to specifically pay for private school tuition.

The stakes: Education and policy reporter Rachel Cohen spoke to Cara Fitzpatrick — author of The Death of Public School: How Conservatives Won the War Over Education in America — about the future of public schools.

Fitzpatrick's book, which comes out next week, traces the history of the fight to define what "public education" means and who gets to decide.

In her research, Fitzpatrick discovered that conservatives have used a long-term strategy to limit public schooling in America, establishing small school choice programs and then using those experiments to push the boundaries of state and federal law.

Fitzpatrick told Vox, "In the last couple of years we've seen some pretty aggressive attacks on public education by Republicans, and the rhetoric has definitely become more extreme. … A few prominent conservative school choice advocates have pretty openly said we should really use these school culture wars to push the movement forward."

Read the full interview here.

NEXT UP

Burning Man's climate chaos, briefly explained

Jordan England-Nelson/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images

The annual bacchanal in the desert was especially tumultuous this time around. Here's what you need to know:

Burning Man is an artsy, quasi-countercultural festival that converts Nevada's Black Rock Desert into a makeshift city that houses nearly 80,000 people for a week every year.
The festival started in 1986 as a small gathering in San Francisco, but now is a destination for influencers, celebrities, and tech giants alike. General admission tickets start at $575, which doesn't include a $150 vehicle pass. [NPR]
Because of the remote location, hosting Burning Man requires thousands of generators, car travel, and plane trips. As such, each Burning Man produces more than 100,000 tons of carbon dioxide. [Burning Man Environmental Sustainability Report]
That led to climate protesters blocking the main road in and out with a 28-foot trailer ahead of this year's event. Traffic was stalled for hours, and one protester was hurt. [Vox]
Then, storms and mudslides trapped the revelers and forced them to shelter in place over the weekend. One person was reported dead. Now, travelers are stuck in an 8-hour-long traffic jam out of the muddy desert. [NBC]

PRESS PLAY

We don't know how AI works

The researchers who create and study tech like ChatGPT don't understand exactly how it's doing what it does. This is the first episode of "The Black Box," a two-part series from Unexplainable.

Listen now ▶

AROUND THE WEB

Amtrak's monopoly on train transportation is slipping. Private companies like Brightline are aiming to bring high-speed rail to more cities in the US. [Washington Post]
US Open ejected a fan after they shouted a Nazi-era phrase. German player Alexander Zverev complained about hearing the individual use what he called "the most Hitler phrase there is in the world." [CNN]
First lady Jill Biden tests positive for Covid-19. This is the second time the 72-year-old has been infected. [NPR]
China just fought back in the semiconductor exports war. It aims to restrict two key materials used in computer chips and other tech products, but experts say the move won't have the desired impact. [MIT Technology Review]