A new poll by the Atlanta Journal Constitution shows lackluster support among Georgia voters for some Republican leaders plans to divert public funds to private education.  The poll, which was conducted by the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs between January 3 and 11 of this year shows that only around 35% of voters “strongly approve” or “somewhat approve” of the idea.

Last year, rural conservative Republicans joined with Democrats in opposing plans to provide taxpayer money for Georgia residents to send their children to private schools.  In many non-metro areas of the state, there is simply no “school choice” available for parents and taking funds from the local school district could be detrimental for education.

Here in Chattooga County, there are no private school choices for parents.  Only parents who can afford to drive their children to Rome or Chattanooga have those options.

In neighboring Floyd County, there are private schools where annual tuition fees run between $11,000 (Unity Christian) and $18,000 (Darlington) per high school student.