Do private school vouchers help kids graduate from high school? A new study about the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) suggests that might be the case:

In “Graduation Rates for Choice and Public School Students in Milwaukee: 2003-2007,” John Robert Warren, Ph.D., compares graduation data for students in the MPCP and the MPS. Dr.Warren concludes that “students in the MPCP are more likely to graduate from high school than MPS students.”

According to Warren, had MPS graduation rates equaled those of MPCP students, there would have been almost 20% more public high school graduates between 2003 and 2007. Over the five years studied, that would have meant nearly 3,000 additional MPS graduates.

The very smart Jay Greene also points out the need for caution: Warren acknowledges “he can’t say whether the voucher program caused their higher graduation rate.”

But our Governor – who has promised to cut the state’s dropout rate in half – ought to pay attention over the next few years, as Jay Greene is working on a study that will help answer the question: Do private school vouchers help kids graduate from high school?