This is a guest opinion column
My perspective as a mental health counselor informs everything I do.
In this role, I am tasked with caring for the wellbeing of dozens of public school children in comparison to Britt’s two. That means after reading an op-ed Senator Britt penned in the Hill about school choice, I could not stay silent about the harm she and others will cause our children if school choice (school vouchers) legislation is allowed to expand.
Students that benefit from my services receive them at no cost to themselves or their families and are able to access them at their public school. That means students with limited economic means and transportation issues have counseling services they would not normally have access to.
Many of my students also benefit from 504 accommodations and IEPs that public schools are required to accommodate with experienced and qualified staff. These students are the ones who would be left behind if tax dollars and funding was taken from them to benefit neurotypical students who come from wealthy and upper middle class families.
As much as we would like to pretend private schools would provide the same accommodations as public schools, private schools are able to turn away students due to disabilities, poor academic performance, or behavioral issues (often a result of students needing mental health support). I am also left wondering how my students with transportation difficulties would even get to a private school.
I also find it baffling that Britt holds Alabama as a shining example for how private schools could save students from failing public schools and improve their learning outcomes. When our legislators enacted school voucher legislation, they rejected the requirement that private schools receiving this funding be accredited and staffed with certified teachers. Not even completely certified teachers– just certified in the subject they teach. Unlike Britt, that is what I would consider careless spending.
Additionally, we have learned that private school curriculum is not held to the same standards as our state determined curriculum. That’s right– our state government determines our curriculum, not our federal government. Private schools are also not required to be assessed in the same way our public schools are which makes the quality of a private school education dubious at best.
Our nation has learned over the years that voucher programs, scholarship programs, and tax credits serve families that already send their children to private schools. Wealthy families like Britt’s do not need the $100 million in funding that will be stripped from my kids at public schools in 2026 to subsidize their already privileged children’s education.
We have also learned that “failing” schools are located in areas with higher levels of poverty, and Alabama has a higher percentage of students living in poverty than the national average. Instead of pouring resources into these schools to attract more educators, resources, and better outcomes, that will uplift our children’s emotional and mental wellbeing, we wish to further hinder the success of students in these areas and give wealthy kids even more opportunities.
I love my students, who I and other caring professionals call our “kids,” and I want the best for my kids. I want my kids to receive a free, accessible education that is the same no matter their parents’ income; regardless of whether they have disabilities or need additional resources to succeed.
I want their teachers and school staff to have the tools, training, and classroom sizes that allow them to be their fiercest advocates and mentors. I want my tax dollars to continue being funneled to schools and students who actually need it. The future Britt and other wealthy legislators want for the children of Alabama is a future in which only kids like Britt’s will succeed. I want all of our kids to succeed.
Ryann Taylor is an Associate Licensed Counselor in the state of Alabama. She has worked with children and adolescents since 2021. You can follow her on Instagram @hsvteentherapist.