Parental tax credit program has no standards for accreditation

Only accredited private schools qualify for the states Parental Choice Tax Credit program, a voucher-like state subsidy for parents to use toward tuition. But schools need only report the name of their accreditor. There is no verification beyond that, and any accreditor goes. Among the schools approved are Goodland Academy, a middle school in Hugo that shuttered for two years but maintained accreditation and reopened in February with five students, all of whom received a tax credit. A preschool at the Oklahoma City Zoo also received state approval, listing accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which evaluated the zoo on standards primarily focused on animal welfare and veterinary care. Candice Rennels, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma City Zoo, said accreditation through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums is rigorous and includes an education component. Tuition is $345 per week — about $14,000 per year. As of Aug. 8, state regulators had approved 175 private schools for the Parental Choice Tax Credit program. Families of all incomes whose children attend those schools can claim $5,000 to $7,500 per student per year, but priority is given to those earning $150,000 or less. Combined, those schools obtained accreditation from 19 different organizations, each with different standards and little oversight. “Not all accreditors are created equal,” said Chris Belyeu, executive director of the Oklahoma Private School Accrediting Council. Since 1995, the Oklahoma Board of Education has partnered with the Oklahoma Private School Accrediting Council to vet private school accrediting agencies. Schools that accept students in the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship program, a voucher program for students with disabilities, must be accredited by the Board of Education or another of the 15 organizations approved by the council. To gain approval from the council, members review standards and attend site visits with accreditors. But schools in the Parental Choice Tax Credit program aren’t limited to the list of vetted accreditors, opening the door to less-thanrigorous accreditation or pay-to-play schemes — what Belyeu calls flyby- night accreditors. How We Got Here Legislators approved the Parental Choice Tax Credit in 2023, capping a major push to expand the states school choice programs. The program is set to cost $150 million this year and expand to $250 million by 2026. In writing rules for the program, the Oklahoma Tax Commission proposed requiring schools to be accredited by the Board of Education or an association approved by the board. But the proposal faced pushback. One response, from a national organization called Yes Every Kid, said requiring board approval was too limiting. “A private school in Oklahoma is not required to be accredited by the state and can seek accreditation from any accrediting association,” they wrote. Relying on the board’s list would unnecessarily narrow a law written to apply broadly to private schools to which parents choose to send their children, the organization said in an email. Yes Every Kid advocates for state policies that send public money to private schools and is funded by billionaire industrialist Charles Koch. “I see the OTC and Dept, of Education taking away parents’ choice by limiting eligible private accredited schools only to the state board of education entities,” a parent wrote in another comment. “This defeats the purpose of this bill, is sneaky and tyrannical.” EdChoice, an organization that lobbies for charter schools and voucher programs, wanted at least a minimum level of vetting. They suggested that the rules be amended to include accreditors recognized by a state, regional or national accrediting body. Ultimately, the Tax Commission reverted to the language in the bill, accepting accreditation from any organization. Emily Haxton, a spokeswoman for the commission, said they don’t determine whether a private school has met the accreditation standards. Other States Vetting of accreditors in school choice programs varies nationwide. Some states, such as Iowa and West Virginia, have lists of 5 to 10 approved accreditors. Cognia and the Association of Christian Schools International consistently appear on those lists. Others include more accreditors. Arkansas, for example, approves 22 for its school choice program, comparable to the Oklahoma Private School Accrediting Council list used for Oklahoma’s Lindsey Nicole Henry scholarship. Conversely, North Carolina’s Department of Non-Public Education has no control over accreditors. The department’s only role is to keep record of the registered private and home schools in the state. Utah and Arizona don’t require accreditation at all. Accreditation A Low Bar The Oklahoma tax credit created a rush of private schools seeking accreditation, and some were completed in a shorter-than-typical timeframe. For some, that meant quick improvements, such as adopting a curriculum or extending school calendars to meet accreditors’ standards. Accreditation generally means a school has demonstrated educational quality and adheres to state regulations. Private accreditors tend to focus on educational quality. Religiously affiliated accreditors also check that schools follow certain religious teachings or values. The Oklahoma Department of Education mainly checks for compliance with state regulations. Some private schools pursue accreditation both from the state and another entity for that reason. One example is Cristo Rey Oklahoma City Catholic High School, which is accredited by the Oklahoma Department of Education and Cognia. Cognia completed its review of Cristo Rey last year. It’s a four- to fiveyear process, with two formal site visits, and a $1,200 annual fee. The Department of Education review lasted less than a year, included two meetings with a regional accreditation officer, and cost nothing. Kelsey Herman, Cristo Rey’s principal, said the key difference was Cognia’s emphasis on continuous improvement. Cognia is the largest education accreditor in the world, with 40,000 public and private schools across the globe. Cognia also runs three of six regional accrediting agencies in the U.S. Having regional standards makes the transition to a different high school seamless for students who move to another state, helps students qualify for some college scholarships and is the only route for students going to the military after high school, said Mark Elgart, president and chief executive officer of Cognia. “There are schools that use that term (accredited) very loosely,” Elgart said. “I would advise parents to verify it and to do any research to make sure that accreditation actually looks at, on a regular basis, the quality of the school.” Signs that an accreditation is not high quality include an ability to fast-track the process, webcam reviews instead of on-site visits, and renewal periods of more than five to seven years, industry experts said. Josh Cowen, a professor of education policy at Michigan State University who authored a book on tax-funded school choice programs, said lack of accreditation would almost certainly guarantee a poor-quality school, but accreditation itself doesn’t guarantee a high-quality school. “Accreditation is a very low bar for these private schools to pass,” he said. For that reason, Jim Johnson, president of the Lawton Academy of Arts and Science, said when seeking out a rigorous accreditation, they chose Cognia. He said it took six months to obtain accreditation that included months of gathering data, getting it ready, then “a week of hell” for the accreditation visit. The school posts its entire accreditation report and testing data online, which is rare for private schools. “You can be the best thing in the world, but until somebody else tells somebody else you’re the best thing in the world, nobody knows it,” Johnson said. Ron Titus, head of SNU Lab School, said accreditation is becoming easier as more accreditation agencies are popping up to expedite the process for programs like Oklahoma’s parental Choice Tax Credit. SNU Lab School has been accredited by the Department of Education for 51 years and just earned accreditation through the Association of Christian Schools International. He suggested that parents do a bit more digging if a school touts its accreditation; parents should be asking schools how long they have been accredited, he said. Belyeu, of the Oklahoma Private School Accrediting Council, said school choice programs such as the tax credit give parents options, but also a lot of responsibility. “Any school can say they’re doing a great job,” he said. “I would look at their external validation, and primarily, that’s going to be accreditation.” Ruby Topalian is a 2024 summer intern at Oklahoma Watch covering general assignments. Contact her at rtopalian@ oklahomawatch. org. Jennifer Palmer has been a reporter with Oklahoma Watch since 2016 and covers education. Contact her at (405) 761-0093 or jpalmer@oklahomawatch.org. Follow her on Twitter @ jpalmerOKC.