State Shows Huge Success With School Choice

An article published Sunday detailed how Florida’s school choice program has shown roaring success, suggesting that parents “vote with their feet” when it comes to their children’s education.

Tens of thousands of parents have opted to enroll their children in private, charter and home schools across Florida since Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis enacted school choice programs shortly before the pandemic, according to Politico. The success of the programs are so broad that some school district leaders and lawmakers are trying to shut down public schools instead of funding them to meet with the academic standards of other institutions. (LEARN MORE: School Choice Fuels Innovation, Experts Say)

One of the plans is to condense dozens of schools in an effort to reduce operating costs. But the proposals are being met with heavy resistance from parents. Some 200 people showed up to a town hall meeting in opposition of turning a Fort Lauderdale magnet school into a neighborhood school. Thanks to the strong voices of the local community, the idea was not enacted by the county superintendent.

Pandemic, Curriculum Concerns

Politico argued that parents in Florida are turning away from public schools over leadership decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic and curriculum concerns. “If your product is better, you’ll be fine. The problem is, they are a relic of the past — a monopolized system where you have one option,” lobbyist Chris Moya said of public schools. “And when parents have options, they vote with their feet.”

“Florida has shown a blueprint, and we really can be an engine for that as other states work to adopt a lot of the policies that we’ve done,” DeSantis said of the program. (LEARN MORE: Universal School Choice Enacted In 10th State. What Does This Mean For You?)

An additional 90,000 Florida students enrolled in private schools and other educational programs in the 2022 academic year thanks to universal school choice being enacted throughout the state. Left-leaning organizations have said the programs will hurt states financially. But in reality, the opposite is true.

Community Keeps Us Going

The government may think your child’s life and education career is best conducted under their rule, but we know that parents should always come first. There are entire cities where public schools can’t educate one student to math proficiency — do you really want this for your child’s experience?

You can tell your local, state, and federally elected officials how you want your public schools to look today. Sign up for www.MillionVoices.org today (text MV to 80550). We’ll ensure your voice is heard. Our mission is to ensure the voice of voters and taxpayers is turned into action, and your elected officials are held responsible for their actions.