School Choice

Tracker

Which States Have Private School Choice?
Education savings accounts, voucher, and tax-credit scholarships are growing. This tracker keeps tabs on them so you don't have to.
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School & District Management Explainer What's Going On With Public School Enrollment? All the Big Questions, Answered
Districts across the country are contemplating a future with fewer students. What are the trends, and how did this happen?
Mark Lieberman, June 27, 2024
11 min read
Jay-Z arrives at the premiere of "The Book of Clarence" on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. Jay-Z is putting his weight behind an effort to fund private school vouchers in Philadelphia. The entertainment mogul’s Roc Nation announced it is funding a campaign in June 2024 to drum up support for the Pennsylvania Award for Student Success.
Jay-Z arrives at the premiere of "The Book of Clarence" on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. Jay-Z is putting his weight behind an effort to fund private school vouchers in Philadelphia. The entertainment mogul’s Roc Nation announced it is funding an outreach campaign to drum up support for the Pennsylvania Award for Student Success.
Richard Shotwell/Invision via AP
School Choice & Charters Why Jay-Z Is a Key Figure in the School Voucher Debate
Jay-Z's backing of school vouchers in Pennsylvania has public education advocates worried it will divert funds.
Brooke Schultz, June 11, 2024
6 min read
Students at The Lab School of Memphis read a book on the playground.
Students at The Lab School of Memphis read a book on the playground.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
School Choice & Charters Video How Microschools Can Fit in the Broader K-12 System
Microschools are a necessary option to support students within the broader K-12 system, according to this school founder.
Sam Mallon, June 7, 2024
3:32
School Choice & Charters Video Private School Choice: A Video Explainer
We're tracking the proliferation of school choice policies around the country. Here's how to get up to speed.
2 min read
Image of private school kids outside in the school yard.
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School Choice & Charters Private School Choice Continues to Spread. 3 Things to Know
New research shows private schools increase tuition when states send public funds for parents to spend on private education.
Mark Lieberman, May 23, 2024
6 min read
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DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
School Choice & Charters Opinion Does School Choice 'Work'?
Ultimately, the “how” of educational choice may matter more than the “what.”
Rick Hess, May 21, 2024
10 min read
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DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
School Choice & Charters Opinion 'Control Freaks' Are 'Losing Their Grip' on Education
"School choice evangelist" says new laws are a response to unions, bureaucracies, and K-12 ideologues.
Rick Hess, May 16, 2024
12 min read
Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton walks away after announcing Texas' lawsuit to challenge President Obama's transgender bathroom order during a news conference in Austin, Texas, on May 25, 2016.
Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton walks away following a news conference in Austin, Texas, on May 25, 2016. Paxton recently sued several Texas school districts for allegedly engaging in electioneering before the March 5 primaries.
Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP
School & District Management Advocacy or Electioneering? Education Leaders Walk Fine Line in School Voucher Debate
Texas is cracking down on district leaders' allegedly political speech—in what others see as a pretext for quashing anti-voucher sentiment.
Olina Banerji, March 11, 2024
5 min read
Image of students working at desks, wearing black and white school uniforms.
iStock/Getty
School Choice & Charters Another State Is Launching a Private School Choice Program. Will More Follow?
Alabama is the 12th state to offer a private school choice program that all students in the state will be eligible to access.
Mark Lieberman, March 8, 2024
5 min read
Student walking down the stairs at her school.
iStock / Getty Images Plus
Student Well-Being Parents Worried About Their Kids' Mental Health See the Fix in New Schooling Options
Parents who say they are considering a change to their children's education identify mental health as a driving factor, a new report shows.
Arianna Prothero, February 22, 2024
5 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
School Choice & Charters Opinion What's the State of Charter Schools Today?
Even though there's momentum behind the charter school movement, charters face many of the same challenges as traditional public schools.
Rick Hess, January 22, 2024
10 min read
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Nuthawut Somsuk/iStock/Getty
School Choice & Charters As Private School Choice Grows, Critics Push for More Guardrails
Calls are growing for more scrutiny over where state funds for private school choice go and how students are faring in the classroom.
Mark Lieberman, January 16, 2024
7 min read
Conceptual illustration of business people, a roll of paper, and the people using computers, a magnifying glass and telescope with the year 2023 as a shadow below them.
Liz Yap/Education Week and iStock/ Getty.
Budget & Finance 2023 in School Finance: Legal Fights, School Choice Debates, Persistent Inequities
Highlights of the year in school finance coverage include school funding lawsuits, private school choice legislation, and the looming financial storms brewing.
Mark Lieberman, December 22, 2023
6 min read
Nina Rees, CEO of the National Public Charter School Association.
Nina Rees, president and CEO of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, emphasizes that she has "always thought of [charter schools] as laboratories of innovation with the hopes of replicating those innovations in district-run schools."
Courtesy of McLendon Photography
School Choice & Charters Q&A How the Charter School Movement Is Changing: A Top Charter Advocate Looks Back and Ahead
Nina Rees, president and CEO of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, plans to step down as leader of the group at the end of the year.
Arianna Prothero, December 20, 2023
6 min read