The Voucher Scam
The Voucher Scam is an exposé on one of the most critical issues facing public education today – education vouchers.
As Texas leadership pushes an aggressive voucher agenda that would privatize and defund public schools, The Voucher Scam gives listeners a behind-the-scenes look at what’s really at stake.
The Voucher Scam podcast is a four-episode series hosted by Claire Campos-O’Neal and Nichole Abshire and brought to you by the Mothers for Democracy Institute (M4DI).
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We need your help!
For an upcoming episode, we actually need your help. We need your voices literally. We’re creating an episode where we’re going to share stories, experiences and perspectives from our listeners.
1. Tell us what you love about your public school(s)? What’s one amazing thing that your public school offers?
2. How are you feeling about the push for vouchers in Texas?
And for folks not in Texas:
How have vouchers affected your schools? What message of encouragement would you give us in Texas to fight vouchers?
Use this link to leave us a message:
The Hosts
Claire Campos-O’Neal
Claire Campos-O’Neal, mother to two young boys, daughter of a first generation Mexican-American, is the co-host of Go Behind the Ballot. In November of 2021, she put her name on the ballot and ran for office for the first time for House District 51. While she didn’t win the race, she learned a great deal about her community, the inner workings of local politics and the importance of putting yourself out there.
This act of courage propelled Claire to launch a podcast ‘Go Behind the Ballot’ with her co-host Nichole Abshire in August 2022. Together they strive to demystify Texas politics one issue at a time. Their show is pro-democracy, conversational and always edu-taining.
In Claire’s free time she volunteers as the President of the Del Valle Education Foundation. She is passionate about ensuring that Texas students have access to high quality public education and every opportunity to succeed in school.
Nichole Abshire
Nichole Abshire has had a long and winding career journey. She spent 10 years as an elementary school teacher and then left to spend more time at home with her kids. Once home, she returned to her creative outlets and began writing and acting. She has acted in commercial and theatrical projects, written screenplays and a novel.
Nichole is a 6th generation Texan and daughter of an immigrant. This cultural collision has made Nichole endlessly curious about the world. She brings that curiosity plus a healthy skepticism to politics. She comes from a family of educators and still believes in the power of education to make meaningful change. Through this work, she has discovered an unwavering belief in democracy and is beyond grateful to have this organization to work actively towards its preservation.
