The 46th Annual PDK/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools came out in late August, illustrating public opinions about a variety of education issues. Two of the issues the Poll addressed are the public’s lack of support for private school vouchers and its misunderstanding about the fact that charter schools cannot teach religion.

AU opposes private school vouchers for many reasons, including their failure to provide better education opportunities for students, their lack of accountability, and their ability to use taxpayer funds to teach religion, violating the principle of the separation of church and state.

According to the poll, a majority of Americans agree with AU and oppose vouchers as well. This year, 63 percent of participants opposed school vouchers, not far off from last year’s even more extreme response of 70 percent in opposition. The fact that a majority of the public do not support vouchers points out how misguided state and federal legislators really are when they push these programs.

School vouchers continue to be struck down in the courts as well: a North Carolina Superior Court recently ruled that private school vouchers violate the state constitution based on the voucher schools’ ability to discriminate based on religion while using public funds, among other reasons.

This year, the Poll asked some new questions about charter schools. It brought to light a common misconception many have about charter schools: nearly half of Americans (48 percent) believe charter schools can legally teach religion. In reality, charter schools are publicly funded and, like traditional public schools, may not teach religious doctrine and must honor the separation of church and state.

AU, therefore, takes no position on charter schools unless they improperly try to incorporate religion into the school. In fact, AU’s legal team recently called for an Arizona charter school remove religious books from its curriculum, and asked an Ohio charter school not to hold its graduation in a church.

AU will be watching this fall for any legislation that would promote religious doctrine in our public school system, whether that is allowing creationism in the classroom, encouraging school teachers and administrators to engage in prayer on public school campuses, or creating private school voucher programs.

To stay informed about potential voucher legislation in your state, sign up for AU action alerts here, and check out the State Action Center.