classical schools

Across 423 counties in 13 states, 26 million Americans live with a persistent opportunity gap. It’s not because of a lack of effort, talent, or community commitment, but because big government systems meant to serve them have failed to deliver. At the center of that failure is education. For too long, families in Appalachia have been asked to accept a one-size-fits-all public education system that assigns children to schools based on ZIP code rather than need, fit, or school quality. The results have been predictable. According to the Appalachian Regional Commission’s 2019-2023 American Community Survey, just 27.3 percent of adults in the region hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 35 percent nationally. In Kentucky’s Appalachian counties, that number Read More ›

Keri D. Ingraham appeared on Futures Edge on June 22 to discuss the landscape of education freedom in America today. She and host Jim Iuorio discussed the Trump Administration’s progress in dismantling the Department of Education and why it was created under President Jimmy Carter. They also explore alternatives to public school and four-year colleges that can set students on paths toward a successful future.

For decades, the Appalachian region of America has been the subject of political promises, federal programs, philanthropic funding, and endless so-called solutions. Despite trillions of dollars in government spending and generations of outside intervention, the majority of Appalachian communities continue to struggle with poverty, addiction, outmigration, economic stagnation, and weak educational outcomes. Appalachia has long been given “the wrong kind of attention,” according to Garrett Ballengee, president and CEO of the Cardinal Institute for West Virginia Policy. Under Ballengee’s leadership, the Center for Appalachian Renewal is committed to creating a brighter future for people, not another generation of paternalistic programs or distant experts managing decline from afar. Nowhere is that failure more obvious than in education. If Appalachia is going Read More ›