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Trump’s return to the White House puts National School Choice closer to reality than ever before.
GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN – APRIL 02: Former President Donald Trump speaks to guests at a rally on April 02, 2024 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. At the rally, Trump spoke next to an empty lectern on the stage and challenged President Joe Biden to debate him (Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images)
National School Choice is a movement in the United States. This movement promotes giving families the freedom to choose educational options for their children. The options include public schools, charter schools, private schools, homeschooling, and online schools. The goal of National School Choice is to allow education funding to “follow the student,” letting parents decide where those funds are best spent.
Overview of National School Choice
Significance of the National School Choice Agenda
Marco Rubio, a U.S. Senator, has called the current state of public schools for many disadvantaged American children “a disaster,” adding, “many of these schools deny opportunity to those who need it most.” He believes parents should be “the ultimate decision-makers on where their children go to school,” yet notes many poor and working-class families lack this choice. Rubio stressed for children with special needs, the ability to choose the right school was even more crucial.
The National School Choice Agenda is about giving families in the U.S. more options when it comes to their children’s education. Parents, instead of being forced to send their children to a school based on where they live, can choose from different types of schools. Every child will get an education which works best for them.
Trump’s Current Impact on the Future of National School Choice
President-elect Donald Trump, during a 2024 campaign rally in Wisconsin, highlighted former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson’s work on education. He praised Thompson for starting school voucher programs and said they are a great example of how to give parents more control over their kids’ education.
“We’re moving education back into the states,” Trump said, sharing his plan to expand school choice and let families decide what’s best for their children.
School choice has strong backing from the Trump administration. School choice proponents are gearing up for what they believe could be a transformative period under the new administration. Trump, alongside a Grand Old Party-controlled Congress, is poised to bring federal attention to a movement that has seen mixed success at the state level.
“I know there’s certainly going to be a push in Congress for a federal tax credit scholarship for school choice,” said Ed Tarnowski, policy and advocacy director for EdChoice. “We fully support anything that empowers families to choose the education that best fits their needs.”
The Trump administration has proposed substantial federal funding to support school choice. This includes allocating billions of dollars for charter schools, private school vouchers, and homeschooling programs. These actions are aimed at empowering parents to select the best school for their children.
North Carolina and Arkansas have increased their budgets for school choice programs by $463.5 million and $90 million, respectively.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced there is enough support to pass school choice measures in 2025.
“Every candidate that I backed in Texas House general election races won tonight,” said Abbott. “There are more than enough votes to pass school choice in Texas.”
However, these initiatives still rely on legislative approval and public support to succeed.
Who’s Challenging Trump’s National School Choice Plan?
Major teachers’ unions like the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the National Education Association (NEA) are leading the opposition. They say using public funds for private schools harms public schools serving most students. AFT President Randi Weingarten stated, “Vouchers and similar schemes drain resources from public schools and harm the students who rely on them”.
“The redistribution of federal funds risks creating a two-tier education system where public schools are left behind,” said a representative from the NEA.
Resistance also comes from rural communities and their representatives, including some Republicans. There is concern school choice policies could weaken already underfunded public schools in areas where public schools are central to community life and private alternatives are scarce.
“My three kids graduated from public schools, and they turned out just fine,” Todd Warner said. “Ninety-five percent of our students, our future business owners, our future leaders, are going to public schools. They’re not going to private. Why take it away from them?”
Key Figures in the Trump Administration’s Education Policy
President-elected Donald Trump chose Linda McMahon as Secretary of Education.
“Linda will use her decades of Leadership experience, and deep understanding of both Education and Business, to empower the next Generation of American Students and Workers, and make America Number One in Education in the World. We will send Education BACK TO THE STATES, and Linda will spearhead that effort,” Trump said in a statement.
McMahon’s appointment shows the administration’s focus on giving families more options, which some have called a “national school-choice mandate”.
Private School Choice Initiatives
Understanding Private School Options
Private school choice programs have different forms:
- Government-funded scholarships (Vouchers) paying for students to attend private schools
- Programs offering tax credits to individuals or businesses donating to scholarship funds, which in turn provide private school tuition assistance
- State-funded accounts parents can use for approved educational expenses, including private school tuition
Analysis of Rejected Private School Proposals
Private school choice proposals often face significant opposition despite support from some policymakers. Voters in Kentucky rejected a measure intended to support private education. This outcome shows a trend where such initiatives struggle to get voter approval. Historically, school choice ballot measures have failed in 14 out of 16 instances. This failure indicates a strong reluctance among voters to divert public funds to private education.
Potential Benefits of Private School Choice Programs
Parents are more satisfied with their children’s education in private schools compared to traditional schools. Approaches in these schools and personalized learning can help many children achieve their best results. These programs help families save their finances.
Legislative Framework for National School Choice
Donald Trump discusses major changes to U.S. education at a 2024 press conference (Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Trump’s Promised Education Reforms
President-elected Donald Trump has laid out a bold vision for transforming the U.S. education system.
Here are the changes expected during his administration:
- Expand school choice: vouchers, tax-credit scholarships, and education savings accounts
- Dismantle the Department of Education and return control to states
- Promote “patriotic education” in schools
- Increase support for charter and private schools
- Reduce federal oversight and eliminate Common Core
What Trump’s School Choice Agenda Means for Parents?
Families have greater access to school choice programs. Parents can use public funds to enroll their children in different types of schools. Programs like the Educational Choice for Children Act provide tax credits for donors. These credits allow the creation of more scholarship opportunities.
Increasing funding for school choice programs is a solution for families with small income. These funds bring a wider access to private schooling and homeschooling resources. This support can make life easier for thousands of families.
School choice allows parents to choose schools aligning with their children’s learning styles, religious beliefs, or extracurricular interests. The optimal school for a kid is a way to achieve great results in education.
Legacy Online School’s Expert Opinion
“There is currently much debate surrounding the National School Choice reforms introduced by Trump. Supporters of National School Choice argue it provides families with greater freedom, and the opportunity to choose schools helping every child achieve the best results. Such options are crucial for families who travel frequently, have tight schedules, or have children with special needs. We at Legacy Online School understand this initiative can offer many opportunities for diverse families whose needs, for various reasons, cannot be fully met by traditional education systems.
We also understand the concerns of those opposing the reforms, as some of these concerns indeed carry risks whose consequences are difficult to predict at this time. One of the major concerns is the initiative to downsize the Department of Education. This initiative is being promoted on the premise it will lead to the decentralization of power to the states, thereby addressing bureaucratic and certain other issues. The flip side of this initiative is the potential for educational inequality and a decline in the overall quality of education.
We believe despite the risks, with the right approach and a balanced effort between decentralization and maintaining high-quality education, the American education system can reach a new level. Every family can get more options and opportunities to provide their child with the best education, paving the way for a promising future”.
By Vasilii Kiselev, Founder and CEO of Legacy Online School
Contact the Legacy Online School team to learn more about the upcoming changes.
