Voucher schools include some teaching creationism
MELINDA DESLATTE, Associated Press
Updated 03:41 p.m., Monday, July 30, 2012
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BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Taxpayer dollars in Louisiana's new voucher program will be paying to send children to schools that teach creationism and reject evolution, promoting a religious doctrine that challenges the lessons central to public school science classrooms.
Several religious schools that will be educating taxpayer-subsidized students tout their creationist views. Some schools question whether the universe is more than a few thousand years old, openly defying reams of scientific evidence to the contrary.
Critics say it's inappropriate to spend public money on such religious teaching, arguing such programs undercut a strong science education and threaten the adequate preparation of students for college science courses.
"What they're going to be getting financed with public money is phony science. They're going to be getting religion instead of science," said Barbara Forrest, a founder of the