Florida approves vouchers for parents who perceive ‘COVID-19 harassment’ in schools
Florida’s State Board of Education on Friday approved an emergency rule hastily crafted by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration that will allow parents to use vouchers to move their children to another school if they perceive any type of “COVID-19 harassment” against their child in connection to district rules on masking, testing and isolation due to exposure.
The rule was unanimously approved by the board after an hour-long conference call, a week after DeSantis issued an executive order instructing the state health and education officials to write rules protecting parents’ rights to decide whether their children should wear masks in K-12 schools. DeSantis has threatened to withhold state funding from districts that do not comply with the order.
It’s all part of the governor’s larger push to prevent school districts from imposing school mask mandates amid a resurgence of the pandemic and a rapid rise in cases, including among children, many of whom are still not eligible for a vaccine. The issue sits at the intersection of both the governor’s policy and political agenda, as his political team amplifies his stance on the issue and raises funds off of it.
During the conference call, dozens of parents voiced both opposition and support for the rules, exemplifying the polarization around the issue of mask wearing and other COVID-19 protocols in schools. One parent, for instance, said that public health measures should not be considered “harassment” while other parents said that no child should be “segregated” or discriminated against based on their health decisions.
Under the emergency rule, which went into effect immediately, parents will be allowed to apply for Hope scholarships when a “school district’s COVID-19 health protocols, including masking, pose a health or educational danger to their child.”
The legislative intent for Hope scholarships was to provide vouchers to kids who are being bullied or harassed. Many Democrats in the Legislature have argued the new rule is a violation of that intent. But State Board of Education Vice Chair Ben Gibson said the board has the authority to expand the definition of harassment under the program’s statute.
“The rule is narrowly tailored, and it aligns with the statute creating the Hope scholarship, and the board has the absolute authority to define harassment further, which we’ve done,” Gibson said.
The approved definition of “COVID-19 harassment” under the rule is expansive. It included “any threatening, discriminatory, insulting, or dehumanizing verbal, written or physical conduct an individual student suffers in relation to, or as a result of, school districts protocols for COVID-19, including masking requirement, the separation or isolation of students, or COVID-19 testing requirements.”
Several parents during the conference call questioned whether parents would be able to claim “COVID-19 harassment” and use a voucher to move their kid to “safe schools that require masks.”
The answer was yes.
“This could be on either side of whatever the mandate is. If a child for whatever reason is harassed by other students or anyone at the school in connection to their health protocols,” said Matthew Mears, the general counsel for the Florida Department of Education.
Mears added: “This rule allows a parent to access a scholarship that they could use to go to a different public school, they could cross to a different district … or you could access a private school that accepts paid scholarships.”
The Hope Scholarship program currently has about $6.2 million readily available for disbursement, said Jared Ochs, a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Education.
The department, however, has not clarified whether schools would be required to accept the scholarships or if students would be allowed to keep the scholarship for the duration of their schooling or just this year.
