HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – On a raw, damp day, hundreds of school children from across the commonwealth stood on the steps of the Capitol and lifted their voices in unison.

“What do we want?” yelled the man at the microphone.

“Choice,” the students shouted in response, loud enough for lawmakers to hear them.

“When do we want it?” shouted the emcee.

“Now,” the kids screamed in response.

The assembled crowd wants full-blown school choice, also known as vouchers, which allows parents to send their tax dollars with their children to the schools of their choice.

They’re not gonna get that anytime soon.

Too many opponents see full-blown school vouchers as unconstitutional because they would steer tax dollars to religiously affiliated schools. It has been tried many times in the past and it has always failed.

But the crowd did have reason to celebrate.

“If I can’t have choice, I’ll take this,” said David Rushinski, principal at Harrisburg Catholic Elementary School, speaking of the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) Program.

Rushinski calls it the next best thing to actual vouchers.

“We receive about $187,000 a year for our kids. About 95 percent of our kids receive some kind of assistance to come here through the program so the benefit to our families is great,” he said.

Supporters call the EITC a win-win. Companies can donate up to $750,000 a year to scholarships that are awarded to students in need. The companies get to reduce their state tax liability.

“Bear in mind, they’re gonna pay their state taxes anyway,” said Otto Banks, Executive Director of the REACH foundation, which hosted the Capitol rally. “Why not give it to a child? Why not make it available to a child to go to the school of his or her choice?”

India Gwynn is a senior at Logos Academy in York and her family benefited from the EITC program. She’s headed to the University of Pittsburgh in the fall.

“Being at Logos Academy has really benefited me and I feel that being here I’ve gotten a solid education and I feel I’m ready to move into the world,” Gwynn said.

Pennsylvania caps the EITC program at $150 million. Rep. Stan Saylor (R-York) is the chairman of the Education Committee and he says he’d like to expand it to $500 million over the next 10 years.

“We’ve gotta do something to help these kids who are in poverty, escape poverty and that means they have to get a quality education,” Saylor said.

Supporters who came to Harrisburg to rally are hopeful that someday there will be total school choice.

But in the meantime, they are thankful for EITC.

“Without it, I don’t know what would happen,” Rushinski said. “I don’t know if we’d be here.”