Education Freedom and Parental Empowerment through School Choice
We are actively working to open the door for more parents to have access to alternative education options for their students. We believe education freedom is essential. Parents know what is best to meet the unique needs of their children and must be free to select the learning avenues they desire. Consequently, funding should be attached to the individual student, not the system.
The K-12 Public Education Monopoly
In America, K-12 public education has operated largely as a monopoly. In fact, other than state-owned monopolies in China, it is the largest government-controlled monopoly in the world.
Individuals pay taxes that fund public schools, and children are assigned to a specific school based on their home address and school zone boundary lines. The majority of families are not able to select a different public school (other than in communities with mandated public school open enrollment laws) regardless of the school’s failure to provide quality student learning or to keep children physically safe. In order to move outside of the public system, parents must be able to homeschool or have the ability to pay tuition for private schooling — whether the private school is traditional, hybrid, online, a learning pod, a microschool, cooperatives, tutors, or a combination.
The lack of market competition in K-12 education results in the subpar status quo. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) exam scores reveal that private school students score significantly higher in each individual subject than public school students at all testing grade levels — fourth, eighth, and twelfth. This is despite public schools spending, on average, $17,187 per student per year compared to the national private school tuition averaging $13,183 .
By stifling competition, innovation suffers, academic accountability is dramatically weakened, and curriculum transparency is not required. Additionally, fiscal responsibility is nearly irrelevant as the vast majority of students are trapped in the public education system, maintaining its near monopoly.
Historically, most parents have accepted this reality, either not understanding how it could change or not believing change was possible.
Education Savings Accounts
Due to the flexible nature afforded to parents, Education Savings Accounts are the gold standard of school choice programs. An Education Savings Account grants parents a government-funded account to allocate toward the K-12 education of their children. Parents can allocate those toward a wide range of educational expenses, including tuition, tutoring, textbooks, curriculum, test fees, therapies for students with special needs, and educational technology. Furthermore, in some states, the Education Savings Account funds can be saved for the student’s future college tuition.
Universal School Choice
A few years ago, the hope of providing all families within a state with funding to select the education avenues that would best serve their individual children was considered nearly unimaginable. Yet huge historic wins for education freedom were achieved during the 2022, 2023, and 2024 legislative sessions, and more are anticipated.
Related Articles
American Center for Transforming Education February 11, 2026 1 School Choice On February 3, Keri D. Ingraham appeared on The Carrie Abbott Show to discuss the exciting new federal tax credit scholarship that will provide education freedom to millions of students across America. Last year, President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill into law, which included the federal tax credit scholarship. “What that is,” Dr. Ingraham explained, “it’s a first in our nation’s history federal school choice program, and governors just need to opt in to that program so students in their state can benefit.” Thus far, 27 governors have opted their states into the program. Dr. Ingraham explains how this dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit scholarship works. Click HERE to Listen to Keri D. Ingraham on the Carrie Abbot Show … American Center for Transforming Education January 29, 2026 2 School Choice As part of National School Choice Week, the White House hosted an important school choice roundtable event today with U.S. Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon. Discovery Institute Senior Fellow and American Center for Transforming Education Director Keri Ingraham was in attendance. Grateful for the invitation to participate in today’s important School Choice Roundtable at the @WhiteHouse. Thank you @POTUS and @EDSecMcMahon! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/cMu98IxpuD— Keri D. Ingraham (@KeriDIngraham) January 29, 2026 The Trump Administration continues to recognize Ingraham’s significant contributions toward advancing education freedom in our nation through her leadership of the American Center for Transforming Education. School choice, empowering parents, and … American Center for Transforming Education January 28, 2026 3 School Choice National School Choice Week is a great time to celebrate the opportunities and innovations taking place in America’s K-12 education system. At the core of school choice lies this belief: parents — not bureaucrats — know what’s best for their child’s education. Every year, there are school choice highlights, but this year is marked by extraordinary advances in education freedom. While school choice legislation at the state level is underway, there’s a brand-new, transformative law at the federal level: the Federal Tax Credit Scholarship. In a remarkably short period, 26 governors have opted their states into the Federal Tax Credit Scholarship, unlocking new opportunities for families and demonstrating nationwide confidence in policies that put parents … Keri D. Ingraham January 27, 2026 5 School Choice It’s National School Choice Week in America, and the advancement of education freedom is sweeping the country. Governors are opting-in their states to the new federal tax credit scholarship at rapid rates. The scholarship allows taxpayers to contribute up to $1,700 per year to a qualified non-profit scholarship-granting organization and receive a nonrefundable dollar-for-dollar tax credit. Organizations like ACE Scholarships award scholarships to K-12 students. Federal tax credit scholarships can be used for a variety of educational expenses, including tuition, fees, books, tutoring, transportation, and services for students with special needs. The landmark legislation was fittingly signed into law on Independence Day last year by President Donald … American Center for Transforming Education January 26, 2026 1 School Choice Keri D. Ingraham recently appeared on the Knight & Rose Show. Together with Wintery Knight and guest host Bonnie, Dr. Ingraham discussed the importance of introducing the free market into K-12 education, the current dismal reading and math scores of public school students, parental rights and involvement in education, and the exciting school choice wave that has swept the nation, offering hope to parents and students for a better education. Or, Listen via Your Favorite Podcast Streamer … American Center for Transforming Education January 8, 2026 2 School Choice Following several invitations to the White House in 2025, Discovery Institute Senior Fellow and American Center for Transforming Education Director Keri D. Ingraham returned this week. Yesterday's visit to the White House was a powerful reminder that meaningful progress is being made. 2025 marked a major year for school choice, with six states enacting universal school choice, along with the historic Federal Tax Credit Scholarship and the growing support behind… pic.twitter.com/Ima9Xocr7B— Keri D. Ingraham (@KeriDIngraham) January 8, 2026 The Trump Administration continues to prioritize the advancement of education freedom and education innovation, while breaking down the needless federal bureaucracy. In March, Ingraham was at the White House as a guest of the … American Center for Transforming Education November 20, 2025 3 Innovation In Scottsdale, Arizona, on November 18, Discovery Institute Senior Fellow and American Center for Transforming Education Director Keri D. Ingraham addressed the audience in a packed ballroom at the Hilton Scottsdale Resort during day one of Discovery Institute’s COSM Technology Summit, spanning three days. She referenced the countless significant accomplishments across various policy areas, including education reform, that the Honorable Doug Ducey achieved during his eight years as Governor of Arizona. Most notably, on July 7, 2022, Governor Ducey signed universal school choice into law by expanding the Empowerment Scholarship Account program to all of Arizona’s more than 1.1 million students. At the time, Governor Ducey explained: Arizona kids will no longer be … Caitlin Cory November 20, 2025 4 School Choice On Wednesday, November 19, powerhouses of the education freedom movement took the stage together at COSM 2025 in Scottsdale, Arizona, to discuss educating the future technology workforce. Former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey, Discovery Institute Senior Fellow and Director of the American Center for Transforming Education Keri D. Ingraham, and Love Your School founder and school choice advocate Jenny Clark addressed the COSM 2025 attendees. Doug Ducey (2017) Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority, opened the program. Ingraham then introduced former Governor Ducey, highlighting his groundbreaking success in implementing statewide school choice during his tenure. Arizona became the gold standard of education freedom when he signed universal school choice into … Keri D. Ingraham October 29, 2025 6 Innovation On Oct. 17, Indiana submitted a waiver application to the U.S. Department of Education seeking flexibility and a reduction of red tape from Washington. Under the leadership of Gov. Mike Braun and Secretary of Education Katie Jenner, Indiana is innovating K-12 education from all angles, and the rest of the nation should take note. Upon taking office in January, Braun expanded eligibility for the Choice Scholarship Program to all families in the Hoosier State, creating a free market K-12 education landscape. Demand for education options has surged, and providers have responded. In Indiana, private school choices have expanded significantly over the past four years, with enrollment up 22 percent. Indiana also offers robust public school choice, including inter-district and … American Center for Transforming Education October 22, 2025 2 Education Policy This week, Discovery Institute’s American Center for Transforming Education hosted a special event on Mercer Island, Washington. The evening began with remarks by Discovery Institute President Steve Buri. Then, longtime Discovery Institute Board member Bryan Mistele interviewed Senior Fellow and American Center for Transforming Education Director Keri D. Ingraham. Mistele, a gifted communicator, kicked off the questions by asking Ingraham to share how she became interested in education, her professional journey, and what brought her to Discovery Institute five years ago. Next, the work of the American Center for Transforming Education was discussed. Exciting updates were provided regarding the advancement of education freedom, education entrepreneurship, education innovation, … American Center for Transforming Education October 8, 2025 2 Education Policy On October 1, Keri D. Ingraham spoke to the graduate students in the classical education program at Hillsdale College in Michigan. Ingraham was asked to share about her work as a Senior Fellow at Discovery Institute and as Director of the Institute’s American Center for Transforming Education. Following the introductory time, she delivered formal remarks for 40 minutes in a speech titled “Education Freedom Is Essential.” Here is an excerpt from Ingraham’s speech: As a nation, we can no longer justify restricting children to these failing government-run schools for their education. Nor can the ever-increasing astronomical spending on the public education system continue to support the status quo. Change is urgently needed. And that change will require competition. As … Keri D. Ingraham August 22, 2025 2 School Choice I’m deeply grateful for the abundance of opportunities that continue to come, allowing us to drive true transformational change in education at the highest levels in our nation. This month, I was at the White House participating in a Policy Summit alongside national leaders in education, faith, and public policy. In mid-June, Senior Advisors of the President invited me to the White House to share about the work of Discovery Institute’s American Center for Transforming Education. In March, in recognition of our work to advance education freedom, I received a special invitation from the President to attend a White House unveiling and signing ceremony of the executive order that dismantles the U.S. Department of Education. This executive order serves as the …
