An Evaluation of the Effect of DC’s Voucher Program on Public School Achievement and Racial Integration After One Year

Jay P Greene,Marcus Winters

doi:10.15365/joce.1101072013

Abstract

This study evaluates the initial effect of Washing, DC’s Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP) on the academic performance of public schools and its effects on the opportunities that District students have to attend integrated schools. The OSP is a federally sponsored school voucher program that provides vouchers worth up to $7,500 for an estimated 1,800 to 2,000 students in the District of Columbia. The authors measure whether a public school’s test-score gains are related to its distance to the nearest voucher-accepting private school or the number of voucher schools within a one-mile radius of a public school. The evaluation finds that the OSP has had no academic effect, positive or negative, on the District’s public schools after its first year. The study also compares rates of racial integration in DC’s public schools and private schools participating in the voucher program. This is part of the first-year evaluation of the OSP. The authors plan to continue evaluating the OSP using a variety of approaches.

Highlights

In 2004, the United States Congress implemented the first federally sponsored school voucher program right in its own backyard
The results of our evaluations suggest that after one year, the voucher program has had no significant impact on the DC public schools, positive or negative
The smaller difference for private schools indicates that private schools on average have a racial composition that more closely approximates the racial composition of the broader community in which they are located

Summary

Introduction

In 2004, the United States Congress implemented the first federally sponsored school voucher program right in its own backyard. The DC School Choice Incentive Act (H.R. 2673, 2003) provides vouchers worth up to $7,500 for an estimated 1,800 to 2,000 students in the District of Columbia. Students can use the scholarships to pay tuition at participating private schools in the District. The pilot program is designed to last for 5 years. The existence of this pilot program offers an important opportunity to learn more about the effects of expanded school choice on the performance of students who exercise choice, the performance of students who remain in traditional public schools, the opportunities for students to attend racially integrated schools, and other community effects.

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Conclusion