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Special to redefinED

Coronavirus / COVID-19CustomizationEducation and Public PolicyEducation ChoiceFeaturedNewsParental ChoicePublic School ChoiceSchool ChoiceVirtual Education

Can preschoolers learn virtually? In a Denver pilot program, some kids ‘can’t wait to log in’

Special to redefinED December 18, 2020
Special to redefinED

Moumin Elgizoli, 4, paints with his class as part of a virtual preschool pilot program, a partnership formed in response to parent demand between Denver Public Schools and the taxpayer-supported Denver Preschool Program.

Editor’s note: This post by Chandra Thomas Whitfield published earlier this month on Chalkbeat.

Sara Mohamed and her husband had intended to enroll their 4-year-old son in in-person preschool at Holm Elementary, a nearby Denver public school, but as COVID-19 infection rates soared through the fall in Colorado, they had second thoughts.

They placed their two older children into virtual learning but struggled to find a district program for their preschooler.

“All summer he’d been excited about going to school in the fall; he was so ready to go,” said Mohamed, of Denver. “He was so disappointed when we eventually told him that he would not be able to go to school in person.”

The family’s saving grace came when a call to Mile High Early Learning, a network of nine subsidized Montessori-inspired learning centers in Denver, confirmed they had space in its virtual preschool pilot program.

The program stems from a partnership between Denver Public Schools and the taxpayer-supported Denver Preschool Program, in response to parent demand. Unlike some other Colorado school districts, Denver Public Schools originally did not offer a virtual preschool option. Administrators there believe strongly that in-person learning is better for the youngest students.

It wasn’t quite the “big boy school” experience Mohamed and her family had envisioned for their energetic little Moumin, but they quickly concluded that any help getting him kindergarten ready was worth a try. Mohamed says weeks into the program her son is flourishing, and they’re grateful to have him enrolled.

“He’s so happy, he loves it,” said Mohammed, who supports new Arabic-speaking families and teaches English classes virtually for Holm Elementary. “It’s only 30 minutes a day, but it’s still made a big difference for him. He can’t wait to log in at 3:30 p.m.”

Mile High Early Learning and the Denver Preschool Program said the pilot appears to be working well for enrolled families.

Mile High Early Learning is among 47 providers that had enrolled in the pilot as of Dec. 3, according to Denver Preschool Program President and CEO Elsa Holguín. Some providers are offering remote learning while some are planning virtual programs in case they have to pivot later in the school year.

Mile High Early Learning students log in Monday through Thursday with program-issued iPads preloaded with learning apps, to join a teacher and more than a dozen classmates for 30 minutes. Families also receive books, paper, crayons, markers, and art supplies. The program asks parents to engage their students outside of class in drawing, painting, writing letters, and even homework.

Holguín says the pilot aims to support early childhood education providers. Since the onset of the pandemic, many said they felt like they were, “flying by the seat of their pants,” with limited guidance and direction.

“We decided that the best thing to do was not just to continue to help out our providers, but also to figure out how to start learning more about how to do [distance learning] at a quality level,” Holguín said.

Denver Preschool Program has underwritten sliding-scale tuition and teacher training and coaching, and provided funding to help sites remain afloat as they navigate the challenges of the pandemic.

Mohamed says she believes the program, especially the tuition support and supplies, is a lifesaver especially for working parents who are leery about risking in-person schooling but also want to ensure their children don’t miss out on critical learning opportunities.

“We were so worried that he might get behind,” she said. “We wanted to make sure that he was ready to go to school next year.”

Occasional technical glitches aside, Mohamed says their program experience has been virtually problem-free. They’ve noticed improvements in Moumin’s attention span. She said he’s grown more focused and engaged with each session he joins with his teacher and classmates.

Rebecca Kantor, a Denver Preschool board member who sits on the task force that is developing the distance learning curriculum, said the group sought to incorporate best practices in early childhood education.

“The two most important things that we know about young children’s learning is that they learn through direct experience and they learn within the context of stable trusting relationships,” said Kantor, dean of the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Colorado Denver. “So, we’re trying to recreate that using tech as a tool and we’re really getting very creative in figuring out a lot of different ways to do that.”

For example, she said, one suggested activity entails a student and parent painting together at home, while a teacher discusses with them on screen.

“One of the benefits of doing it that way is that the adult at home is also learning effective conversation skills from the teacher,” she said. “So, there’s a modeling going on that’s really good for the adults, too.”

Mile High Early Learning President and CEO Pamela Harris said along with providing a solid foundation in academics, administrators and teachers in the program have incorporated critical social and emotional learning opportunities.

“Even babies can develop true relationships using technology,” said Harris, who also co-chairs Colorado’s Early Childhood Professional Development Advisory Working Group. “I think it’s the interactivity that is key, having an adult person kind of on both sides, helping the child navigate.” The pilot also provides families resources on a YouTube channel and videos.

The pilot program, which is scheduled to run through the end of this school year, will begin enrolling some 3-year-old programs starting Jan. 4

“We still believe that we need to increase the quality of the distance learning experiences in Colorado,” Holguín said.

December 18, 2020 0 comment
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Commentary and OpinionEducation ChoiceFeaturedPrivate School ScholarshipsPrivate SchoolsSchool ChoiceStudent VoicesStudentsTax Credit ScholarshipsVoices for Education Choice

In her own words: A Step Up Scholar on the most important thing she learned in high school

Special to redefinED December 17, 2020
Special to redefinED

Editor’s note: Isabella Garcia, a senior at La Progresiva Presbyterian School in South Florida, wrote this essay as part of her college application. Located in a working-class section of Miami, La Progresiva serves 622 students who qualify for Florida Tax Credit Scholarships. Isabella’s essay came to redefinED unsolicited and is being published with her permission. You can hear more from La Progresiva students here.

The most valuable lesson I have learned while in high school is to be charitable. I have attended La Progresiva Presbyterian School (LPPS) for nearly thirteen years. Yes, this is a private school, and no— my single mother is not rich. I have been fortunate enough to attend this school because of charity – the kindness of others. 

I, along with many others, attend this school on the Step Up For Students low–income scholarship. Were it not for this act of charity, I might not have the aspirations I do now. Being the child of immigrants heavily affected my academics; my mother pushed me to do my best in school because she wanted me to have the future that was out of reach for her.

This scholarship that I was awarded and was able to use at LPPS was a ray of hope for my family. Although I may have been too young to realize the opportunity I was provided, it has propelled me to never take anything for granted. This form of charity has given my family and me this educational opportunity, opening the possibilities of a better life.

These multi-million dollar companies, through a charitable tax credit, may have provided what seemed to them an insignificant donation, but through their charity have provided me with opportunities that otherwise would not have been available. Throughout my thirteen years at LPPS, I realized that it was imperative for me to be a part of the ripple effect. 

Different missions projects and community service opportunities at LPPS opened my eyes to the impact that charity has on a community. When one of the students was diagnosed with cancer, the entire school came together to fundraise and assist her family, even after her passing. I have learned that being part of something bigger than myself will produce an impact that will resonate. 

In every aspect of my life, I have gained the understanding that you must love your fellow man as yourself. Through the giving of my time, just like the giving of the donations to produce these scholarships, I have learned how essential charity is to produce a society, in which kindness can abound. 

The charity I have received has inspired me to participate in acts of goodwill, such as the Susan G. Komen “More than Pink Walk”, which cemented my desire to dedicate my life to paying it forward. Personally, escorting the last participant in the walk – who was currently battling cancer herself and required a walker – was one of the greatest honors of my life. 

This event played a pivotal role in my choice of career; seeing the impact doctors have on the lives of these women has motivated me to pursue a career as a doctor. Science has always been an interest of mine and a career in which it can be used to help others will fulfill the thirteen-year lesson of charity I have been given.

December 17, 2020 1 comment
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Coronavirus / COVID-19CustomizationEducation and Public PolicyEducation ReportingFeaturedNews

‘Every day is a challenge’: 8 lessons from the toughest school year ever

Special to redefinED December 3, 2020
Special to redefinED

Editor’s note: There’s no one-size-fits-all answer to educating students in person during a pandemic. But schools and districts across the country have found things that work for them and that may be options for other places as they navigate the months before widespread vaccination. This article originally appeared Dec. 2 on politico.com.

There’s no blueprint for how or whether to open schools during a pandemic, leaving districts across the country to draw up their own.

What has emerged is a patchwork of strategies that reveals lessons about what works — and what doesn’t. Or what has worked at least sometimes. Big districts with deep pockets point to regular COVID-19 testing for teachers and students as the only option. Other districts are giving families — and teachers — a choice in the matter, leaving it up to individuals if they want to reenter classrooms. Some schools are prioritizing ventilation, contact tracing and access to computers at home.

Districts across the U.S. seem to agree that the most at-risk students should have access to in-person learning first and foremost, and that a hybrid attempt, allowing at least some in-person teaching, is better than a rush back to the real thing or nothing at all.

Education equity concerns are starting to edge out virus concerns, and states are weighing the risks and rewards of reopening schools. Coming off of little national guidance other than President Donald Trump’s imperative to open schools, the pressure is on President-elect Joe Biden to deliver his campaign promise of more emergency funding for schools and “clear, consistent, effective” national guidelines.

Until then, here’s what schools can learn from districts that have forged ahead on their own.

Continue reading here.

December 3, 2020 0 comment
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Commentary and OpinionDemographic ResearchFeaturedSchool Choice

The grading lies we tell our students

Special to redefinED December 1, 2020
Special to redefinED

Editor’s note: In September, the Florida Council of 100, in cooperation with the Florida Department of Education, released a study that pointed to a “rigor gap” between the grades Florida high school students receive and their mastery of content required to pass end-of-course exams in Algebra I and Grade 10 English Language Arts. This commentary from Steven Birnholz, Florida Council of 100 executive vice president and director of policy, and Eric Frey, an economist for the Florida Council of 100, published recently on the Thomas B. Fordham Institute’s website, expands on that story and explains why the “rigor gap” matters.

Two years ago, Seth Gershenson and Fordham published Grade Inflation in High Schools, groundbreaking research examining the relationship between students’ Algebra I course grades and end-of-course (EOC) test results in North Carolina. Gershenson found that 36% of Algebra I students who scored a “B” in the classroom did not pass the state’s corresponding EOC. Now there is evidence from Florida.

Our recent work in the Sunshine State also uncovered a chasm between students’ grades and EOC scores for courses required for graduation. Looking at Florida Algebra I and tenth grade English students from 2015–18, we found that 55% of students who did not pass the Algebra I EOC, and 72% of English students who did not pass the EOC, received a “C” or higher in the course. Further, more than a third of students who did not pass the EOC for 10th-grade English received a “B” or higher in the course.

We call this disparity between a school’s evaluation of a student’s level of mastery of state standards and the student’s demonstrated mastery of those standards on corresponding statewide standardized tests “the rigor gap.” This rigor gap matters for two key reasons.

First, it is not hard for any of us to think back to a class where we did not learn as much as we could have, or should have, because we knew the teacher’s grading practices made the course an “easy A.” In fact, a 2010 study showed that students study 50% less when they expect teachers to award relatively higher grades.

This reduction in what is learned in a course can have serious personal and economic consequences. Just like we did, today’s students will likely study less than they would have if their teacher held them to a higher standard, and by the time the student has received their EOC score, which raises the question of which measurement of knowledge should be given more credence, it is time to enjoy summer recess or focus on the next class in the subject’s succession.

Second, the rigor gap should be concerning to students and parents because it illustrates that many are investing two of life’s scarcest resources, time and money, into college or career decisions based on incomplete or misleading information about their chance of success. A 2017 nationwide survey found that while 84% of 12th-grade students want to go to college, only half felt that their school had helped them develop the skills and knowledge they need for college-level classes. Part of this likely arises from the lack of conviction students may possess in their abilities when their course grades and EOC results tell opposing stories.

It is also worth noting that, while this research was conducted with student data prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, we hypothesize that the drastic impact it had on students’ learning experiences during the 2019-20 spring semester has likely exacerbated the rigor gap presented in the cohorts which comprise our research through, among other things, more lenient grading practices. These include “do no harm” grading, pass/fail systems, or even “no grade issued” approaches.

This lack of incentive to work to raise a “C” to a “B” — or to receive any grade at all — likely decreased many students’ mastery of standards typically covered in the latter half of the school year. The effects were further magnified by the cancellation of year-end summative assessments based on the suspension of federal requirements. If a second year of waivers were to be granted, some students could be halfway through high school without an honest answer to how prepared they are for their desired future.

Fixing the rigor gap is not an easy proposition, but research from North Carolina and Florida tells us it will lead to students learning more — regardless of race/ethnicity, gender, or previous academic performance. Accomplishing this will require a collaborative effort among school leaders, teachers, parents, and students.

For district and school leaders, closing the rigor gap can be supported by, among other things, increasing the efficiency by which students’ course grades and EOC scores can be compared. Here in Florida, and we’re confident this issue exists in other states, the amount of effort that must be undertaken by teachers in certain school districts to compare their students’ course grades and EOC scores is unacceptable.

We believe that, once cognizant of the existence of, and educational damage caused by, the rigor gap, many teachers will naturally adjust their grading practices to better ensure that students are mastering state standards throughout the year and, thus, are more prepared for their EOCs. For those classrooms that persistently display a rigor gap, an infrastructure which provides clear, efficient presentation of this information will better equip school administrators to have an objective conversation with their teachers on this important subject.

For parents and students, the awareness of this rigor gap means a failing EOC score should spark sincere reflection, rather than them brushing it off because of a high grade in the corresponding course. If the local school district provides concise interim, formative assessments, it means the reflection and comparison of course grades and EOC scores can start earlier to avoid potentially finding out how behind one is at the end of the school year.

Although the rigor gap is likely nothing new, the time to address it is now. It is high time that students are told the truth so they can approach their dreams with the conviction that they are ready.

December 1, 2020 1 comment
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2020 Presidential ElectionAdvocate VoicesBipartisanshipCommentary and OpinionCommon GroundEducation and Public PolicyEducation ChoiceEducation EquityEducation PoliticsFeatured

This Memphis mom has a Thanksgiving message for Joe Biden

Special to redefinED November 26, 2020
Special to redefinED

A recent initiative of the grassroots Powerful Parent Network was raising money to meet with all of the 2020 presidential nominees to lobby for parental empowerment and education choice.

Editor’s note: This post from former teacher, school board member and passionate education choice advocate Erika Sanzi features a powerful message from a fellow school choice advocate. The commentary appeared earlier this week on Education Post.

Sarah Carpenter, executive director of Memphis Lift, spent much of the 2020 primary season bringing her message—her plea—for liberation from failing schools to all who were in the fight to become the next president of the United States. Miss Sarah is a fierce advocate for children and parents—she doesn’t have any preferences when it comes to district schools, charter schools or private schools. She just wants the children of North Memphis—and all children—to have access to a good school.

Sarah appears in and narrates the video below on behalf of the Powerful Parent Movement and her message to president-elect Biden is clear.

She, and all the members of the Powerful Parent Movement, know that self-determination comes with having the freedom to choose the right school for your child. Let’s hope the president-elect is willing to listen.

https://educationpost.org/one-memphis-mom-and-grandma-has-a-thanksgiving-message-for-joe-biden/

November 26, 2020 0 comment
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Commentary and OpinionCoronavirus / COVID-19CustomizationEducation and Public PolicyEducation ChoiceEducation EquityEducation PoliticsFeaturedParent EmpowermentParental ChoiceSchool ChoiceTax Credit Scholarships

Faced with needs, voters unsurprisingly chose school choice

Special to redefinED November 17, 2020
Special to redefinED

Editor’s note: This commentary from Ben DeGrow, director of education policy for the Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Midland, Mich., published Monday on The Hill.

The once-forecasted political “blue wave” offered labor leaders and their partisan allies the hope of rolling back educational choice, but that wave never arrived. With Democrats unable to take over new state levers of power, they and union officials instead may be facing a torrent of new initiatives to give students and families more opportunities.

In this most unusual year, the coronavirus pandemic has opened many parents’ eyes to the brutal shortcomings that pervade K-12 education, and voters returned to office more policymakers who are willing and able to take a stand on parents’ behalf. Labor leaders and bureaucrats accustomed to running the school system should brace themselves for a jolt of parent power.

Using emergency CARES Act funds, some states already have revealed new strategies to fund students directly during the pandemic. For example, Texas and Ohio authorized $1,500 microgrants to families to help them supplement the special education services their disabled children receive while in-person instruction is unavailable.

Friendly leaders in the nation’s capital have demonstrated an unprecedented level of backing for choice over the past four years. It’s one issue that increasingly resonates with voters across the political spectrum — almost 70 percent favor expanding choice.

Ten years ago, a “red wave” handed over the keys to many state legislatures and governors’ mansions to a political party not beholden to teachers unions. That fresh burst of lawmaking energy turned 2011 into the Year of School Choice, as state leaders across the country adopted 18 new voucher, tax-credit scholarship and education savings account programs. Many thousands of students experienced new opportunities as a result.

This month, dozens of pro-school choice officials won election in a number of key states, according to the American Federation for Children. A growing and diverse coalition of frustrated parents may prompt these lawmakers to open new approaches to help children succeed. They could expand private school choice programs like the ones formed a decade ago, and add fresh kinds of aid that enable families with lesser means to work directly with teachers in setting up learning pods.

Parents’ hopes are also backed by a powerful legal precedent. Last June’s groundbreaking Espinoza ruling at the U.S. Supreme Court bars state courts from using archaic constitutional provisions to block parents from choosing private, religious schools when they use publicly funded scholarships. In fact, the state where the Espinoza case originated soon may be part of the vanguard. The election of a new Montana governor places state control entirely in Republican hands, opening up possibilities for more robust programs than the small 2015 scholarship initiative that triggered the case.

As states take up the cause, choice supporters should look to Florida to see where legislative work could lead. A statewide nonprofit there recently handed out the millionth scholarship to a low-income K-12 student, in a story that stretches back nearly 20 years. Those scholarships are funded by corporate donations that receive tax write-offs, the result of a 2001 law adopted under then-Gov. Jeb Bush. The scholarships help many academically struggling students rise to the educational level of their more advantaged peers. 

The votes of Black mothers whose children benefit from Florida’s K-12 scholarships put Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis over the finish line during the 2018 election. With lawmakers from both parties, he has worked to deliver more choice to families in a state where accessible education options already are common.

While a few states may be ready to follow in Florida’s steps, school choice survived an onslaught in a different state. The union-supported “Red for Ed” movement aimed to scale back one of the nation’s most robust array of educational choices in Arizona. Yet voters, who appear to have narrowly rejected both the president and the incumbent Republican U.S. senator, also dashed Democratic hopes of taking over either chamber of the legislature.

Across the continent, in a state President-elect Joe Biden won easily, New Hampshire completely reversed a 2018 Democratic takeover that, last year, prompted efforts to squash a smaller version of a Florida-style scholarship tax-credit program. With the proposed repeal now on ice, a fresh batch of legislators soon will have the chance to expand educational opportunity in the Granite State.

Newly energized by students and parents in need, reform-minded policymakers across the nation are poised to expand the bounds of learning opportunities. If their actions make possible a new wave of successful students and satisfied parents, they could transform education in the U.S. for decades to come. 

November 17, 2020 0 comment
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Commentary and OpinionDemographic ResearchEducation and Public PolicyEducation ChoiceEducation SpendingFeaturedFlorida Tax Credit ScholarshipPrivate School ScholarshipsSchool Choice

Florida’s tax credit scholarship saves taxpayer dollars and helps students succeed

Special to redefinED November 6, 2020
Special to redefinED

Editor’s note: This guest editorial written by Florida Sen. Joe Gruters, who represents District 32 and serves as chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, first appeared in the Sarasota Herald Tribune.

In her Nov. 1 column, (Herald Tribune opinions editor) Barbara Peters Smith wrote that she welcomes a debate on school vouchers – as do I. But she describes a very different education landscape than the hard facts reveal. Two decades of data demonstrate that Florida’s Tax Credit Scholarship program has benefited the low-income students it is aimed at.

First, we need to put to rest the idea that private schools improve outcomes because they “weed out” students less likely to succeed. The truth is students who choose the FTC – 68% of whom are Black or Hispanic, with an average annual family income of about $25,755 – are among the lowest-performing students in the public schools they leave behind.

According to research by the Learning Systems Institute at Florida State University, new scholarship students scored roughly 5 percentile points lower in math and reading than scholarship-eligible public students in the year before they started on the scholarship. A 2013 report described the difference this way: “Scholarship participants have significantly poorer test performance in the year prior to starting the scholarship program than do non-participants … These differences are large in magnitude and are statistically significant.”

If that is “weeding out,” then private schools are doing a poor job of it – they’re taking the kids who have the biggest mountains to climb academically.

And yet, standardized test score analyses of FTC students consistently show that even though scholarship students were, on average, the lowest-performing students in their prior public schools, they’re now making the same annual learning gains as students of all income levels nationally. In other words, the average scholarship student has moved from falling further behind grade level each year to gaining a year’s worth of knowledge in a year’s worth of time.

That has led to long-term success. In its 2019 report, the Urban Institute found that FTC students were up to 43% more likely to enroll in four-year colleges than their public school peers, and up to 20% more likely to earn bachelor’s degrees. For those who used the scholarship four or more years, the outcomes were even stronger – up to 99% more likely to attend four-year colleges, and up to 45% more likely to earn bachelor’s degrees.

All these improved outcomes are coming at far less cost than the alternative. According to a 2019 analysis by Florida TaxWatch, the average amount for a Florida Tax Credit Scholarship was $6,447 in 2017-18, while the average per-pupil funding for Florida district schools was $10,856. That puts the value of the scholarship at 59% of the average, per-pupil cost in district schools.

It’s not just private school students who are benefiting from scholarships. A report this year from the National Bureau of Economic Research found as the FTC program expanded, students attending public schools most affected by the increased competition from private schools experienced higher test scores, reduced absenteeism and lower suspension rates.

Meanwhile, during this two-decades growth in tax credit scholarship enrollment – and education choice in general – Florida overall has made impressive strides in academic achievement. Florida ranks No. 3 in the nation in K-12 achievement, its highest position ever. The state also ranks No. 1, No. 1, No. 3, and No. 8 on the four core tests of the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

So much for choice dragging down Florida public schools.

The results are indisputable positives for Florida students, particularly low-income students. That’s why education choice supporters like me welcome a debate on scholarship programs: We have the facts on our side.

November 6, 2020 0 comment
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Advocate VoicesCommentary and OpinionCoronavirus / COVID-19Education ChoiceEducation EquityEducatorsFaith-based EducationFamily Empowerment ScholarshipFeaturedFlorida Tax Credit ScholarshipMcKay ScholarshipParental ChoicePrivate School ScholarshipsSchool ChoiceVoices for Education Choice

Commentary: Now more than ever, families need choices in education

Special to redefinED October 28, 2020
Special to redefinED

Editor’s note: This column by Shannon Dolly, principal at Mount Moriah Christian Fundamental Academy in St. Petersburg, first appeared in the Tampa Bay Times. Thirty-eight students at Mount Moriah attend on a Florida Tax Credit Scholarship and eight attend on a Family Empowerment Scholarship.

As a single mother who raised a daughter with special needs, and as the principal of a private school in St. Petersburg with mostly low-income students, I understand the obstacles many families face finding the best learning environment for their children.

COVID-19 has only added to those struggles, for them and for many more families who suddenly have found their options limited. Now more than ever, they need choices in education.

Growing up, I never thought about alternatives to traditional public schools. My mother was a public school administrator, and I went through the public school system. But when I had my daughter, Taylor, I felt I had to do better for her.

I tried to get her into a district magnet school, but we were shut out of our top five picks. The only alternative was to send my 5-year-old on a 45-minute one-way bus ride from the southern part of Pinellas County to a school in the northern part.

That was out of the question.

That’s when I learned about the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship for low-income students, which enabled me to afford tuition at a private school closer to home that best met Taylor’s needs. The scholarship carried her from kindergarten through eighth grade.

She then received a McKay Scholarship for students with special needs that allowed her to attend high school at LiFT Academy in Seminole. She graduated in 2018. Her academic success would not have been possible without the scholarships providing us with real choices.

I’ve also seen the value of choice from the other side.

Since 2015, I’ve been principal at Mount Moriah Christian Fundamental Academy, a middle school with 38 students on the tax credit scholarship and eight on the similar Family Empowerment Scholarship. Mount Moriah offers these children what they can’t find in other schools, and the scholarship provides them the means to attain it.

That has become especially important during the pandemic. When schools shut down because of the virus, in-person learning was denied to those who wanted — and needed — it. Many families struggled with online learning from home. Parents became frustrated with their lack of options.

At Mount Moriah, we have parents who want their kids in school, and others who don’t. So, we have offered them three preferences: Some students attend the brick-and-mortar classroom full time; some do online learning full time; and some do a combination of both.

Our parents love that they have a voice, that we listened to that voice, and that we accommodated that voice.

The pandemic has opened parents’ eyes to the virtue of choice and has made them understand they don’t have to settle for what is handed to them. Now they’re forced to think outside the box, to ask: What else can I do? In these unusual times, they are more willing to look for options beyond what has been considered normal. Recent polls show that parents increasingly want more choices in their children’s education.

The pandemic has demonstrated that families must have multiple options available because they never know when they might need them. It also has reaffirmed that education choice should not be a privilege only for those who can afford it. It’s a right — for everyone.

October 28, 2020 1 comment
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