Governor Rick Scott signs SB850, proves insensitive to Hispanics

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC Florida) is disappointed that Gov. Rick Scott signed voucher expansion provisions for private schools in SB 850 into law, something that affects Latino students who are trying to learn English disproportionately in the state.

In doing so Governor Scott ignored the issues raised by so many parent, educator, civil rights and civic groups concerned about the needs of 3 millions students who still attend Florida’s public schools.

SEE ALSO: Education All-Stars ? Miriam Soto-Pressley keeps giving through ESOL

Gov. Scott’s action also demonstrates insensitivity to Hispanic concerns. Like most Floridians, Hispanics want all children to learn English (and other languages too). The problem with State Bill 850 is that it expands the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program but fails to eliminate the disparity in state laws that limits English Language Learners’ (ELLs) access to educational opportunities in voucher (private) schools.

As noted in a complaint by Southern Legal Counsel, pending in state circuit court, state law does not require voucher schools to follow the same state law for programs of English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL).

No justice for ESOL students under SB850

If we want justice for all students who belong to language minorities while in school (not just Latinos), legal guarantees must be in place so that voucher schools—funded by quasi-public funds—also comply with the same state laws for ESOL classes.

The bill was too hastily assembled: By attaching during the last hours of the session the voucher expansion component to unrelated legislation, the bill’s supporters expanded the original draft from five pages to 140.

There was scant time for legislators to read that additional material and none to discuss the policy changes included therein. In short, several controversial topics were adopted without allowing time for input from the public or legislature.

This resulted in needs of the state’s quarter million ELLs, 78% of whom are Hispanic, being disregarded.

These final hour maneuvers left no time for our elected officials to devise a way for state ESOL law to apply to voucher schools. There was no opportunity to consider the Fordham Institute’s recommendation that states should release  students’ test results at the voucher school level to strengthen accountability. There was not even a moment to consider fiscal implications of extending eligibility for vouchers originally intended solely for needy students to middle income families. There was no clarification of what place in the queue for vouchers would be held by groups accorded priority status for voucher eligibility.

It comes as no surprise that this flawed process resulted in a flawed bill.

Confusion caused by SB850

Several education stakeholders who sent email messages to Governor Scott had reservations about each of the major components of the bill. Many of the messages from Hispanics were prompted by concern for ELLs. Others revealed that unanswered questions about the bill had given rise to unrealistic expectations. Parents already able to send their children to private school believed that taxpayer donations would soon be paying at least part of their tuition when the bill was signed. One gentleman, for example, sent repeated messages asking the Governor to sign the bill quickly so his seven children, apparently already enrolled in private schools, could immediately benefit from the voucher program. Many who asked for approval of the bill expressed their erroneous impressions that a veto of SB 850 would end the voucher program.

Pasco County School Board Member Joanne Hurley (R) called SB 850 “the worst piece of legislation that was created during the 2014 legislative session.”

Thanks are due to the individuals and organizations who advocated for a veto. Among the organizations opposed to SB 850 are 50th No More, the Florida Anti-Defamation League, Florida Association of School Administrators, Florida Conference NAACP, Florida Education Association, Florida PTA, Florida School Boards Association, Fund Education Now, Hispanic Coalition of Miami, LULAC Florida, Florida League of Women Voters, LULAC International Embassy, National Conference of Puerto Rican Women-Miami Chapter, Parents Across America, Parents Across America-Florida, Sant La Haitian Neighborhood Center, Spanish American League Against Discrimination (SALAD), and Testing is Not Teaching.

In an effort to increase transparency in government, Governor Rick Scott has made Executive Staff emails available to the public. He should have insisted that transparency also characterize the way our laws are made. Instead he gave his approval to an inadequately scrutinized legislative process and its untidy product.

Now it’s left to next year’s legislative session- or the courts- to clean it up.

SEE ALSO: Lack of school choice might be the reason for lagging ESOL students

Dr. Rosa Castro Feinberg was a secondary school teacher, an Associate Professor at Florida International University, the Director of the University of Miami National Origin Desegregation Assistance Center, and as a member of the Dade County School Board, the first Latina elected county wide. Her teaching, research, publications, and community service focus is policy development for English Language Learners and other special populations. Her consulting clients include school districts, state departments of education, the U.S. Office of Education, Ministries of Education, colleges and universities, Native American Nations, foundations, consulting firms, and law firms. She is a member of the State Education Committees for LULAC Florida and the LULAC International Embassy and an advisory council and founding member of the Spanish American League Against Discrimination (SALAD). Her blog includes information about Florida’s quarter million ESOL students, the organizations that support them, and the legislative and regulatory issues that affect them. http://esolfl.blog.com/