PUBLIC education

Public education in New Hampshire is under assault, with ongoing GOP attempts to defund, delegitimize, and demoralize our teachers and public school resources. The disastrous GOP voucher program has already diverted $8M from our public schools, shifting the burden onto property tax payers.

Did you know…

• Students graduating from NH higher education schools have the highest average debt in the country, and the highest percent of high school graduates leaving the state for 4-year schools.

• New Hampshire has the lowest contribution of state money funding public education of all 50 states, with local taxpayers paying twice as much as the state (63.7% vs. 31.4%). The state also has the lowest level of state funding for higher education per capita in the country, and the lowest relative to personal income.

• NH Republicans passed a bill to give families who send their children to private schools Educational Freedom Accounts (EFAs) that pay an average $4,600 per year for private school expenses like uniforms, books, transportation, and tutors – diverting $8 million from public schools this year, an amount on track to double.

• The NH legislature insisted on putting school vouchers in the state budget after more than 3,000 constituents testified against them.