Show The Nonpublic School Issue President Richard Nixon in his address ad dress before the National Catholic Education Ed Association convention in Philadelphia Phila delphia raised some vital questions for American taxpayers and parents concerning concerning con con- the future pattern of education in the United States Slates They They are arc questions with no easy ans ens- veers As Mr Nixon declared We are arc all well aware of the grave constitutional questions which have arisen in the past each time the states or the federal government gov gov- government nt has undertaken to provide aid to nonpublic schools At the same time Mr Nixon was right when he said that non nonpublic public schools confront a crisis of the first magnitude and that the disappearance of all nonpublic nonpublic non non- public schools in this country could saddie saddie saddie sad die the American taxpayer with an additional ad 3 billion annually in school operating operating operating op op- costs plus as much as 10 billion in new school construction Not mentioned by the President but butof butof butof of equal equa import is the growing widespread wide spread discontent of parents with the tr trends of public school education such as the tendency towards downgrading patriotism the elimination in some some states of history as as required study the tho against prayer or any moral con con- tent teat in school activities and textbooks etc It is because of this that thousands upon thousands of concerned parents 1 have been joining together to establish nonpublic schools where their children child ren ten would not be subjected to the ob ob- features features' of secularism and humanism humanism humanism hu found in many public schools At the same time that parents parent have been faced with a greatly increased fin fin- anical burden imposed by tuition costs t to nonpublic schools the tax load for public schools has been skyrocketing The public school system is largely sustained by property taxes and imd we all aU know what has been happening in all parts of the country property taxes have been climbing out of sight Thus more and mo more e people are paying increased taxes for schooling that they do not approve while sending their children to nonpublic schools at a double double- financial burden This is not simply a question of federal federal federal fed eral aid to parochial schools as pointed point ed out by Citizens for Educational Freedom Freedom Freedom Free Free- dom indeed almost all of the new nonpublic nonpublic non non- public schools est established over the last ten years have been sponsored by Protestant Protestant Pro groups and chur churches hes What is at stake is the principle that each child and his parents receive equal treatment and have an an equa opportunity t to education under the law Whatever is isto isto isto to be done must be fair to all and should not penalize parents who want their children to have an education based based bas bas- ed upon the old fashioned virtues of re religion religion reo re- ligion morality and patriotism |