Arizona Students Celebrate Most Expansive School Choice Initiative

Governor Doug Ducey arizona ESA Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Vouchers Law

By Jo Anne Hubert , Parent Herald Aug 20, 11:27 pm

Arizona students can now attend the school of their choosing. The family and school community celebrate this meaningful victory alongside Gov. Doug Ducey in Phoenix, Arizona.

The governor's office reported that he led the celebration today at Phoenix Christian Preparatory School alongside students who benefitted from Arizona's Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA), a bill he signed that welcomes every K-12 student to participate in the scholarship program. This legislation has been praised as being the most expansive school choice initiative.

Taxpayers' funds for education now go directly to students rather than bureaucratic school systems. Ninety percent of the state-allocated per pupil education dollars are now provided to every family. This is about $7,000 per student for private school tuition, tutors, curriculum materials, online learning programs, and other approved education-related resources.

"Arizona is now the gold standard for educational freedom in America. We're unlocking (student's) educational potential and advancing a bold new era of learning opportunities," Governor Ducey proudly stated. He further said that Arizona kids would no longer be forced to attend underperforming schools as they make sure that the power of choice is regardless of income or address.

ESA taking the nation closer to Milton Friedman's vision

In 2003, the Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman expressed that the goal of the nation is to have a system in which every family in the United States will be given the ability to choose the school where their kids would go. Friedman then emphasized that the nation is far from that ultimate result.

Almost a decade later, the nation is getting closer and closer to Friedman's vision.

Parents and taxpayers cannot help but feel overjoyed and re-energized for this momentous accomplishment, Fee Stories relayed.

Jenny Clark is one of these parents. After her five kids enjoyed the benefits of ESA, she made sure to help other parents have the same opportunity given to her family. She proudly declared that the program is life-changing for many of the state's children, with them having the same opportunities and ability to get the education tailored to their needs.

Another parent, Annie Meade, was able to benefit from universal ESAs. Her four children had a combination of homeschool, micro-school, and public education, and she saw firsthand how Arizona's education options have significantly and positively impacted her kids' education.

Meade shared her passion and excitement for the education savings account at the celebratory ceremony. She said she heard and learned about the program from friends who qualified. However, her family did not have access to the scholarship then. Now that it is, she rejoices with every Arizona family who now has the freedom, the choice, and the opportunity to choose an ESA for their child's education.

Yet, there is still a Fight ahead

Governor Ducey is basking in the victory, yet he acknowledged that there are still some serious fights ahead, Yahoo revealed.

Public school advocates are again trying to block the voucher law, a similar law with enrollment caps, that was rejected in 2017, and scheduled to take effect on September 24. The governor expressed that "misguided special interest groups" will try to push that the legislation will diminish the public education system, which he said is not true.

However, Beth Lewis, the executive director of Save Our Schools Arizona, a grassroots group made up mainly of public school parents, teachers, and concerned citizens, the same group who blocked the 2017 law, negated the governor, saying that his show about universal vouchers accentuates his agenda to subsidize public education.

Lewis and other public school advocates explained that vouchers get funds from an already underfunded public school system, taking away more than the new school funding the lawmakers added in 2022, which is almost a billion dollars. All these happen "while proponents herald the program as letting parents choose the best education for their children."