USA TODAY International Edition
What comes next as school choice sweeps country?
At a recent event in Iowa, newly declared Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley said educational freedom is a top priority.
Haley praised Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds for last month signing into law one of the country’s most expansive school choice programs. And Haley also commended Reynolds for reopening schools more quickly than most during the pandemic.
“We would not have problems in education if we put education back where it needs to be, in the hands of the parents,” said Haley, the former South Carolina governor and U. S. ambassador to the United Nations. “We have to have school choice all over this country. And we need to make sure that we never close schools ever again.”
Heading into the 2024 election, expect to hear a lot more on this subject. School choice is spreading at a record clip, with Republican legislatures and governors thinking bigger and bolder.
It’s also setting up a widening divide between red and blue states, as we’ve seen with abortion rights, following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in June.
Democratic governors ( with support from the Biden administration) are fighting the expansion of private school choice and public charter schools, while GOP- led states are offering families choices they deserve. Teachers unions are fierce opponents of school choice, and Democrats who benefit from their campaign donations usually follow suit.
That might not play well with parents, however.
Reacting to school closures and instruction during COVID- 19
More than 20 states offer some form of private school choice, but before 2021, those programs were targeted to lower- income students or students in poor- performing schools. School choice expansion heated up in 2021, as parents and lawmakers reacted to school closures and instruction during COVID- 19.
We’re not far into 2023, and two states – Iowa and Utah – already have passed universal school choice legislation that will give all parents expanded options regarding their children’s education. This doubles the number of states to do so, following Arizona ( in 2022) and West Virginia ( in 2021).
According to Corey DeAngelis, senior fellow at the American Federation for Children, 2021 was dubbed “the year of school choice” because of the number of victories achieved.
“But 2023 is going to give it a run for its money,” he told me. “The size of the wins this year are already massive, but they are far from over. This will be the year of education freedom.”
‘ A universal school choice revolution right before our eyes’
About a dozen states are considering similar bills this year, including large states such as Florida and Texas. Others include Arkansas, Idaho, Oklahoma and South Carolina.
The momentum is building among red states as they compete to offer the most educational options.
“Another change that we’re seeing is that instead of pushing for incremental reforms and targeted policies benefiting certain categories of students, we’re seeing a bigger push for universal school choice,” DeAngelis said. “We’re witnessing a universal school choice revolution right before our eyes.”
Allowing all ( or most) students to participate is a huge development – and one that is catching on. Most of this legislation offers parents education savings accounts that let them use a portion of their state’s per- pupil funding to attend a private school, buy homeschool curriculum or hire a tutor.
It’s similar to how health savings accounts work in conjunction with medical insurance.
During the pandemic, many felt the frustration of extended school closures and mask mandates, but most didn’t have ready alternatives – especially ones they could afford.
School closures also opened the eyes of parents about what their children were learning, and this had led some GOP states to pursue legislation that pushes back against critical race theory and gender instruction in early grades.
As Jason Bedrick, an education research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, recently observed:
“What’s clear is that parents are clamoring for policies that allow them to choose the learning environments that align with their values and work best for their children. State lawmakers would be wise to listen.”