Of the 179 school districts in Colorado, more than 80% are considered rural or small rural districts. These school districts across the state from the Western Slope to the eastern olains, some of which I am proud to represent as a member of the Colorado Board of Education, are committed to providing the best possible education for the kids in their communities.

Growing funding challenges in the state, however, are making this more and more difficult every year, and deceptive and dangerous ballot initiatives like Amendment 80 could exacerbate these challenges even further. In fact, though Amendment 80 would be potentially devastating for all Colorado public schools, rural schools would likely be hit the hardest.

Amendment 80 is a misleading measure on your November ballot that purports to be about protecting school choice. This amendment to our Colorado Constitution establishes “the right to school choice for children” which families in our state have already had for 30 years. The catch here is school choice is defined in the ballot language as including “private schools,” placing that word in our constitution for the first time in history. The word they want to use — but aren’t using yet — is “voucher.”

Stay up to speed: Sign up for daily opinion in your inbox Monday-Friday

Amendment 80 is nothing more than a backdoor attempt to create a voucher system in Colorado. By specifically including the words “private schools,” proponents are explicitly creating a constitutional right for Colorado families to attend private schools. By proposing these constitutional amendments to voters under the guise of school choice, proponents of voucher programs are really attempting to gain a legal foothold to allow tax dollars to be sent to private schools.

The proponents of this measure dare not use the word “voucher” because Coloradans have already rejected the creation of a voucher system time and time again, at the ballot box and at the state legislature — and for good reason. Colorado can’t afford Amendment 80 or the voucher system it seeks to create.

Taxpayers in other states that have authorized voucher programs that take money from public schools are paying a huge price. For example, while Arizona’s voucher system was projected to cost about $65 million per year they are now looking at about $1 billion annually. Interestingly, 80% of students receiving vouchers in Arizona were already in private schools.

Amendment 80 could devastate public school funding and risk cuts to other critical services like public safety and infrastructure, all while diverting money to private schools that have no responsibility to taxpayers. Private schools do not have to meet the same transparency or accountability standards as public schools, have no requirements to meet widely accepted educational standards, and do not even have to require teachers to have basic qualifications or background checks.

Tragically, the millions in taxpayer funding diverted to private schools will likely hit our rural public schools the hardest, which are already struggling to keep their doors open. Some of the rural school districts I represent have already been forced to go to four-day school weeks, cut back on staffing and are unable to make critical infrastructure improvements. Many rural counties don’t have private schools at all, meaning resources will be diverted to larger metro areas. This disastrous measure could even lead to rural school closures or consolidations due to a lack of funding.

When public education suffers in rural districts, so do rural economies.  Strong schools play a key factor in the economic stability and growth of rural communities. Access to quality education in rural areas is essential for retaining families, building a skilled workforce and supporting local businesses. Our taxpayer dollars should be utilized to strengthen public schools in rural regions of the state, not subsidize private schools.

In my position as a state Board of Education member, I feel privileged to represent schools from Jefferson County to Lake County and Custer County. Our public schools, including our charter schools, educate 95% of our kids and they all play a critical role in serving their communities.

School choice has had broad bipartisan support for decades, and that’s not up for debate. Amendment 80 is an unnecessary measure that siphons funding from the majority of our students to benefit a few, damaging our rural school districts most in the process.

Dr. Karla Esser was elected to the Colorado Board of Education, representing the 7th Congressional District, in November 2020. She will serve a six-year term, ending in January 2027.