school voucher

American  

[skool vou-cher] / ˈskul ˈvaʊ tʃər /

noun

1. a government voucher or cash grant given to a parent or guardian to be used toward paying the fees for their child to attend a private or parochial school of choice, instead of an assigned free public school: She opposes school vouchers, saying they shuffle kids into private, for-profit charter schools at taxpayers’ expense.

   Proponents of school vouchers claim they give the city's poor improved access to quality education.

   She opposes school vouchers, saying they shuffle kids into private, for-profit charter schools at taxpayers’ expense.

---

Etymology

Origin of school voucher

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

On Thursday, the Legislature sent DeSantis a bill that expands the state’s school voucher program to anyone.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 24, 2023

A week later, John Halkias, a school board member from Plain Local Schools in Ohio, wrote colleagues that the letter had been used in legislative debate over a school voucher bill.

From Washington Post • Jan. 13, 2022

He was also the fifth vote in the 5-4 Zelman decision that upheld an Ohio school voucher program.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 27, 2018

Lawmakers were still negotiating other issues, including how much to loosen income eligibility levels to participate in the statewide private school voucher program, said Rep. John Nygren, co-chair of the Legislature’s budget committee.

From Washington Times • Aug. 22, 2017

For many parents with disabled children in public school systems, the lure of the private school voucher is strong.

From New York Times • Apr. 11, 2017