Educating our young people is crucial because they will be the movers and shakers in the coming generation. We should also be proud of the parochial elementary school system which has a proven record in preparing children for higher education and achievement in all walks of life. The Maryland Teachers Association has petitioned for years that they need more funds for the public education system and fewer children in the classroom to achieve a degree of excellence. I believe that school vouchers is a proven and successful solution to their request which in turn will re-energize the parochial elementary school system.
Since the cost of educating a child in a parochial elementary school costs about one-third to one-half of the cost to the city, counties and state for public education, the additional monies saved by the government agencies and the transfer of students to the parochial school system will accomplish both additional monies for the public schools and the number of students will be reduced. What we need to do is figure out how many students we can accept into our archdiocesan elementary schools and survey those parents with children who would like to use our private school system in lieu of the public system. The results would make a good argument for vouchers. Perhaps we could put up 100 scholarships and see how many applications we receive.