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SALT LAKE CITY — Rep. Burgess Owens said he has never seen parents more engaged with their kids' education than over the past couple of years, and parents should have more power when it comes to how their children are taught.
Owens, R-Utah, who serves on the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, was asked about the balance between state and federal government power over education during an appearance at the Sutherland Institute's 2023 Congressional Series at the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics on Wednesday.
"We the people should have the most power in their hands to run their lives. That means getting closer," he said. "States should have more power, districts should have more power, parents should have more power when it comes down to education for kids from pre-K through (grade) 12."
As part of that, the Utah congressman reiterated his support for funding school choice, by offering scholarship vouchers for children to use to pay for private school tuition or tutoring. Utah passed a school choice scholarship bill earlier this year, and Owens is the sponsor of a House resolution to allow states to reallocate unspent funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to spend on school choice.
Republican presidential candidate and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott has introduced companion legislation in the U.S. Senate.
Owens has billed his Raising Expectations with Child Opportunity Vouchers for Educational Recovery (RECOVER) Act as a solution to recouping learning loss sustained during the COVID-19 pandemic. On Wednesday he said school choice will help students and the economy in general, and called for more options in higher education, such as vocational training and trade schools.
He has spoken in favor of increasing eligibility for Pell Grants to nontraditional trade schools and certificate programs such as trucking, cosmetology and dentistry.
"We should be able to find a way for folks to get their degrees, go out there and fill those niches, and it's a win-win for everybody, for our society, for those who are trying to get their dreams accomplished, and for the institutions that are providing value," he told KSL NewsRadio earlier this month.
School choice has become a motivating issue for many on the right following backlash against schools over how they responded to the pandemic.
But critics of the policy argue that it harms public education by taking money out of the public school system and giving it to private institutions that are less transparent. Democrats have also said school choice programs disproportionately benefit students who are already well-off financially, because private school tuition sometimes exceeds the amount covered by scholarships.
Utah is already a business-friendly state, Owens said, and he argued that more school choice will give more students the skills to start and grow businesses. That will help the state as it continues to experience rapid growth, he said.
"Let's not continue to export our most precious treasure: our kids. We need to make sure that we're growing in a place where our kids can afford to stay here," he said. "We have the entire state we can look at. How can we grow ourselves in a smart way? We do that, we keep our culture, our kids, our propensity to be No. 1. This place, I tell you, is just going to be a great thing for your kids, your grandkids."
