The Blog at MSPC

We currently know that roughly half of participating families fall below the program’s priority threshold of 300% of the federal poverty level. What we do not know is the median income of all participating families. But critics routinely leap from “we don’t yet know” to “wealthy families are exploiting the system.”

Let’s start with the basic reality: Idaho is increasing public education spending even as student enrollment levels off or declines.

Parents in Idaho and Montana are among the most satisfied in the country with their children’s schools. In Montana, 51% of parents say they are very satisfied with their child’s school, well above the national average of 47%. Idaho parents report similar confidence, with 48% saying they are very satisfied.

Wyoming residents are speaking loudly in support of school choice. In the first two weeks that residents could apply to receive $7,000 allotment per student under the Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act--signed into law March 4 -- the Wyoming Department of Education received 3,484 applications, which includes 164 for Pre-K.