Many of you reading this column (thank you!) are independent or private school families. And you may be caught in a dilemma you might not have thought much about. You love that you can choose the schooling that suits your family values. You probably even made peace with your tax dollars going into public education as you pay for a private education that works for your family—because you support public education in our nation, and you do not want to undermine it. You want a strong, free nation, with healthy, happy kids everywhere.
Most of us probably don’t see ourselves as a part of a movement. But, today, we all are. As Martin Luther King Jr. put it, “We are not makers of history. We are made by history.” We all live in winds of forces that envelop us. And today, there are real winds of change going on in education in the United States. If you are interested in these changes, their politics, and how they are impacting us, whether we know about it or not, read on.
Today, The United States is witnessing a significant expansion of school choice initiatives. As we witness, we have yet to ask if there’s some kind of tipping point where the public system will not have enough support. This is an outcome of a movement: the school choice movement.
Going back a few decades, I remember my own fervor in beginning a private school and thinking, specifically, “Wow, in the United States, you can freely start a school!” Those were the early days of small, private schools and I did not think of myself as a part of anything nationwide, much less any history—just the opposite: I was departing from trends. And yet, I was amazed by the freedom we had in our country to educate our children as we see fit. I bought a flag.
I never want to lose that amazement. But freedom can take all sorts of shapes. Recent legislative victories in Idaho and Wyoming are the latest examples of a nationwide shift toward educational freedom. These efforts give parents more control over their children’s schooling, particularly through financial incentives like tax credits, education savings accounts (ESAs), and school voucher programs.
The Idaho Governor has just signed the Idaho Parental Choice Tax Credit, the state’s first private school tuition program. With $50 million in funding, this program prioritizes lower-income families, offering up to $5,000 per student (or $7,500 for students with disabilities) to cover private school tuition, tutoring, textbooks, and other educational expenses. That would be equal to around a 20-35% discount at The Grauer School, enough to entice more families every year. (The program will be administered by the Idaho State Tax Commission—not federal—hang on to that thought…)
Meanwhile, Wyoming is ready to join the school choice movement as its legislature recently passed the Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Program, a $30 million ESA program. This initiative, on track for getting the Governor’s signature, would pay up to $7,000 per K-12 student and include pre-K eligibility for families below 250% of the Federal Poverty Level. The Wyoming State Superintendent will administer the program—again, not the federal government.
These programs are part of a larger national movement that has gained momentum in recent years. The fact that they attempt to address freedom for diverse income brackets and learning needs seems heartening and a matter of justice and choice. As Martin Luther King Jr. so powerfully stated, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” The Wyoming and Idaho programs enable previously underserved populations to get a piece of the choice-making that is on the rise—that’s new justice. Will expanding private education address the needs of the general public? This is a question we are facing.
The COVID-19 pandemic played a major role in accelerating school choice policies. Many parents wanted to home school their kids. Pods formed, and some grew creative. Parents got more comfortable with breaking technologies as they learned to integrate them into home learning. Suddenly, many found they could educate their kids in a relative absence of bureaucracy with no overcrowding—small, flexible, learning pods and microschools spawned.
As this all was happening, many of these start-ups strikingly reminded me of The Grauer School at its early days. Except now it is not a handful of renegades. The National Microschooling Center estimates that, as of a year ago, there are approximately 95,000 microschools and homeschooling ‘pods’ nationwide, serving well over one million students. Hold onto your hat. (This does not even count all the small schools and charters that families have been choosing.) The trend is going strong and alternative educational models have surged in popularity.
As public schools faced closures, remote learning struggles, and demoralizing political debates over curriculum and policies (another column), more families and teachers have sought personalized, flexible learning environments outside traditional public school systems. In response, states are enacting legislation to support these choices under the banner of educational freedom. The pods are growing. They are growing despite the resolve of many to keep our public school system strong.
Here in California, charter schools and quick-on-their-feet franchise private schools are expanding as alternatives to traditional public education, navigating regulatory challenges while appealing to families seeking more tailored learning environments.
Advocates, including the American Federation for Children (AFC), argue that such policies empower families by enabling them to choose schools that align with their values, educational priorities, and children’s unique needs. The political landscape has also shaped the expansion of school choice, with conservative lawmakers and organizations championing these policies as a means of encouraging competition in education and reducing government controls. President Donald Trump has publicly supported the Wyoming bill, calling it a victory for parents’ rights.
The Federal Entitlements Issue is a Big Issue…
A critical question surrounding school choice programs is whether private schools that accept funding must comply with federal entitlements, such as IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) and Title IX. If they did, it could alter their whole way of doing business and their ability to specialize and be strategic. The answer largely depends on how the funding is structured:
- Direct government-funded vouchers often come with strings attached, meaning participating schools may have to comply with certain federal or state regulations.
- Tax credits and ESAs, like those in Idaho and Wyoming, redirect money through parents rather than directly to schools, which typically allows private schools to maintain their autonomy and avoid federal requirements.
These programs may expand access to private education, but they may not necessarily guarantee the same protections or services that federal law requires for public school students, such as special education support under IDEA. Families considering private schools under these programs must carefully assess what services will and won’t be available at the institutions they choose. For instance, at The Grauer School, we are very upfront about the teaching and learning conditions we can and can’t offer—we’re wholeheartedly, unabashedly not all things to all people.
Where Are We Going?
As the saying could go, if it does not already: If you think the problems in education are bad now, just wait until the government fixes them! The school choice movement is at a pivotal moment. As more states enact tax credits, ESAs, and voucher programs, public school advocates warn of the potential impact on public school funding and equity in access to quality education. Meanwhile, critics argue that these government-backed reforms, while intended to expand choice, may introduce new bureaucratic complexities, unintended market distortions, and an overreach that undermines true educational innovation—Grauer was formed as a way out of bureaucracy, not a way in. We are an expression of freedom.
And yet, we all have to be concerned about who will provide oversight of private institutions if not the government. That’s a key concern that every parent looking at a school must address. Grauer, for instance, voluntarily commits to WASC accreditation and complies with University of California A-G standards, even though we have never had to. Education choice supporters see commitments such as these as the future of a more flexible, parent-driven education system.
There is an age-old myth that schooling is not political. I’m sure I’d like it that way, but myths are things that were true a million years ago in an idyllic setting. Today, here we all are, drawn into a movement that we either ignore or look squarely at. With Idaho and Wyoming joining the school choice movement, it is no longer limited to a handful of states—it has become a defining political debate in education policy nationwide. It’s personal freedom versus the commonwealth… can we have it both ways? Can we take care of our own families first and also pursue Martin Luther King’s dream for all?
Be on the lookout out for lawmaking, court decisions, and voter ballots to see where it goes. What was once simple personal choice may be part of a movement. For me, I continue to hold fast and passionately to freedom, including my freedom to look after and include those who can use a hand. Let me know if you want to talk more about this amazing reckoning.
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