Quit Pushing Public School Monopolies

Kelvey Vander Hart: Education should be about what is best for the students, not defending a monopolized system and pushing a one-size-fits-all solution.

DeVos: To fix education, ‘Embrace the family as the sovereign sphere that it is’

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos pointed to reforms enacted by theologian turned prime minister Abraham Kuyper and said U.S. education should “go Dutch.”

Episode 109: Why Should Iowans Support School Choice?

On the Caffeinated Thoughts Podcast, Walt Rogers of TEF Iowa discusses the benefits of school choice for parents, taxpayers, and public schools.

Rogers: Placing Kids First in Education

Walt Rogers: Ensuring that dollars follow the student will remove barriers to educational opportunity and place our kids first.

Supreme Court Rules Religious Schools Can’t Be Excluded From School Choice Programs

The Supreme Court ruled that Montana’s exclusion of religious schools in their school choice program was a violation of its residents free exercise rights.

Iowa Senate Ed Committee Votes to Remove Diversity Hurdle to Open Enrollment

The Iowa Senate Education Committee voted to remove diversity plans as a reason five Iowa school districts can use to deny open enrollment requests.

My Three Favorite Moments From Trump’s Third State of the Union Address

Shane Vander Hart’s favorite moments in President Trump’s 2020 State of the Union Address is when he recognized Charles McKee, Janiyah Davis, and Ellie Schneider.

Supreme Court Considers Big School Choice Case

The U.S. Supreme Court has taken up a pivotal case in the fight for school choice: Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue where tax credit scholarships are at stake.

Increase Iowa’s School Tuition Organization Tax Credit

Iowa Association of Christian Schools: Please send your legislators a message in support of an increase in School Tuition Organization (STO) tax credits.

School Choice Bill for Special Needs Students Advances in Iowa Senate

The Iowa Senate Education Committee passed a bill creating education savings accounts for special needs students enrolled in an accredited nonpublic school or denied open enrollment.

Episode 59: Why We Should Pull Our Kids From Public School Now

On the Caffeinated Thoughts Podcast, Mary Hasson with the Ethics and Public Policy Center explains to Shane Vander Hart why parents should remove their kids from public school.

Assessing the 2018 Iowa Legislative Session: My Top Five Disappointments

Shane Vander Hart shares his top five disappointments with the 2018 Iowa legislative session which includes a failure to pass a Religious Freedom Restoration Act, deal with current academic standards, expand school choice, limit state spending, and pass an Article V petition in the Iowa Senate.

Anti-Common Core, School Choice Bills Die in Iowa House

HF 2317, a bill that would make the Iowa Academic Standards voluntary for public schools and accredited non-public schools and HSB 651, a bill that would expand school choice in Iowa, died in the Iowa House Education Committee without a vote.

Episode 29: Expanding School Choice in Iowa

On the Caffeinated Thoughts Podcast, Shane Vander Hart discusses a bill in the Iowa House that would expand school choice in Iowa with Trish Wilger of Iowa Advocates for Choice in Education and Mark Jacobs of Reaching Higher Iowa.

Iowa Student Opportunities Act Introduced in Iowa House

HSB 651, the Iowa Student Opportunities Act, was introduced in the Iowa House of Representatives on Thursday. The bill would create an educations savings grant program and a new charter school program to expand school choice for Iowa’s public school families.