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Grand Canyon Institute 7/22/25 Grand Canyon Institute 7/22/25

ESA Voucher Fraud Case Including Fake Children Raises Integrity Concerns About Universal Vouchers

On Monday, Dec. 2, news broke that an out-of-state couple were indicted for defrauding the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) universal voucher program, by submitting applications for 50 children, 43 of whom do not exist, according to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office.

Hilary Wething 7/22/25 Hilary Wething 7/22/25

The five-alarm fire that public education is facing

All children deserve to attend welcoming and well-funded schools where they can learn and grow, regardless of race, disability, or income. But funding for public schools, where nearly 90% of all U.S. students learn, is at a near crisis point. The Trump administration’s goals, which are taken right out of Project 2025, seem to be to defund public education to the point that it doesn’t work, then offer private school vouchers as a solution to a manufactured problem. In this post, we highlight five ways public education is on fire in the United States and the damage this will do to students’ abilities to learn and thrive. Instead of cutting funds, lawmakers should invest in public schools, one of the best tools we still have to build a prosperous, equitable country.

Honesty for Ohio Education 7/22/25 Honesty for Ohio Education 7/22/25

Public Funds Belong in Public Schools

High-quality public schools are a common good that serve as the bedrock of a high-functioning, multiracial democracy. Yet across Ohio, lawmakers are prioritizing the interests of wealthy donors over the needs of the 10.6 million students who attend public school. Public Funds Belong in Public Schools is a toolkit created for everyday Ohioans who want to stand up for public education and push back against the expansion of private school vouchers.

Jennifer Berkshire and Jack Schneider 7/22/25 Jennifer Berkshire and Jack Schneider 7/22/25

#191 These Conservative Texans Oppose School Vouchers

Vouchers are not conservative. That’s what we heard again and again when we talked to Texans who consider themselves Republicans but oppose their party’s top education priority. We hear from rural Texans who are taking the attacks on their local schools very personally, and business minded Republicans who fear the consequences of privatizing education for workforce development. But the real lesson in this episode is political. The big money push to expand school vouchers, and expel voucher opponents, is spurring rising discontent within the ranks of the Republican party, including among some of Trump’s staunchest supporters.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, Education Law Center, and Freedom From Religion Foundation 7/22/25 Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, Education Law Center, and Freedom From Religion Foundation 7/22/25

Statement on Supreme Court Agreeing to Hear Oklahoma Case Involving Nation’s First Religious Public Charter School

Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, Education Law Center, and Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following statement concerning the petitions for certiorari granted today by the U.S. Supreme Court in Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board v. Drummond and St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School v. Drummond. The organizations represent faith leaders, public school parents, and public education advocates in a separate lawsuit to stop Oklahoma from sponsoring and funding St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.

Jennifer Berkshire 7/22/25 Jennifer Berkshire 7/22/25

Trump’s Education Agenda Is a Big Vulnerability

Donald Trump is pushing an elite-driven school privatization project that is deeply unpopular with his base. It offers a golden political opportunity for Democrats, if only they would seize it.

National Education Policy Center and Joshua Cowen 7/22/25 National Education Policy Center and Joshua Cowen 7/22/25

About That Urban Institute Voucher Study: Q&A With Josh Cowen

The Urban Institute released a report on April 22nd that has been gaining excessive attention among advocates of private-school vouchers. In the Q&A below, National Education Policy Center director Kevin Welner asks Josh Cowen of Michigan State University to help us un- derstand that study and why there has been so much interest among folks who have other- wise been shielding their eyes from recent voucher research. Prof. Cowen was lead author of a similar study published in 2013, so we thought he would be the ideal person to comment on this new one. Cowen is the author of the 2024 book, The Privateers: How Billionaires Created a Culture War and Sold School Vouchers (Harvard Education Press).

National Coalition for Public Education 7/22/25 National Coalition for Public Education 7/22/25

National Coalition for Public Education Denounces Inclusion of National Private School VoucherProgram in Republican Tax Bill

Today, the House Ways & Means Committee introduced a $20 billion national school voucher program in their “mega bill.” If this bill becomes law, vouchers for private schools would be federally mandated in every state in America, despite the fact these programs have been rejected at the state level each time they’ve been on the ballot – a total of seventeen times.

Advancement Project 7/22/25 Advancement Project 7/22/25

Advancement Project Letter Opposing HR-833

On behalf of Advancement Project and 93 national, state, and grassroots racial justice, education justice, and other civil rights organizations, we write in opposition to H.R. 833 and S. 292, the Educational Choice for Children Act (“ECCA”), which would create a nationwide private school voucher program in the form of a 100% tax break for the wealthy.

Save Our Schools Arizona 7/22/25 Save Our Schools Arizona 7/22/25

What is the federal private school voucher program?

Social Media Graphics on the impact of the Educational Choice for Children Act.

Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) 7/22/25 Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) 7/22/25

House Tax Bill Enlists the Wealthy to Spread Private School Vouchers

The tax plan moving through the U.S. House of Representatives includes a provision granting extraordinarily generous treatment to nonprofits that give out vouchers for free or reduced tuition at private K-12 schools. While the bill significantly cuts charitable giving incentives overall, nonprofits that commit to focusing solely on supporting private K-12 schools would be spared from those cuts and see their donors’ tax incentive almost triple relative to what they receive today. On top of that, the bill goes out of its way to provide school voucher donors who contribute corporate stock with an extra layer of tax subsidy that works as a lucrative tax shelter. Essentially, the bill allows wealthy individuals to avoid paying capital gains tax as a reward for funneling public funds into private schools.

Scott Ploof 7/22/25 Scott Ploof 7/22/25

The Billionaire Backers of Louisiana’s Voucher Push: Who’s Funding the Privatization of Public Education?

The fight over Louisiana’s public schools isn’t just playing out in classrooms—it’s playing out in boardrooms, campaign finance reports, and legislative backrooms. With the state preparing to launch the Louisiana Giving All True Opportunity to Rise (LA GATOR) Scholarship Program in the 2025–2026 school year, the future of public education in Louisiana is being reshaped by powerful national forces and influential local reformers.

Erica Meltzer 7/22/25 Erica Meltzer 7/22/25

Congress usually snubs private school choice expansion. Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ embraces it.

A big Republican budget bill in Congress would establish a nationwide, federal school choice program — a potential political breakthrough that conservative lawmakers and advocates have discussed for years but which has consistently stalled.

Kevin Hardy 7/22/25 Kevin Hardy 7/22/25

Rapidly expanding school voucher programs pinch state budgets

Characterizing vouchers as an “entitlement program,” Hobbs said the state could spend more than $1 billion subsidizing private education in the upcoming fiscal year. The Democratic governor said those expenses could crowd out other budget priorities, including disability programs and pay raises for firefighters and state troopers.

Policy Matters Ohio 7/22/25 Policy Matters Ohio 7/22/25

Even more public money for private schools

Ohio’s top politicians want to spend an additional $432 million on private school tuition over the next two years, including a new voucher for unregulated religious schools. The House budget proposal, following the direction set by Gov. DeWine’s budget, continues to draw from a voucher playbook that disrupts and diminishes Ohio’s public schools, threatening the vast majority of Ohio children whose families rely on public schools to build their futures.

Network for Public Education 7/22/25 Network for Public Education 7/22/25

ECCA Video Summary

A video summarizing features of the Educational Choice for Children Act as of 2025.

Diane Ravitch 7/22/25 Diane Ravitch 7/22/25

What’s Democratic About Giving Tax Dollars to Private Schools?

Public schools are essential for democracy—and they’re under attack. But the very policies being championed as their salvation may have a catastrophic impact on American education for generations. Public education advocate and historian Diane Ravitch unpacks how school choice policies like vouchers and charter schools are dangerous for democracy.

Joshua Cowen 7/22/25 Joshua Cowen 7/22/25

The Private Eye

Researcher Josh Cowen has developed a newsletter alongside Public Funds Public Schools on school vouchers and right-wing politics.

Public Funds Public Schools and Advancement Project 7/22/25 Public Funds Public Schools and Advancement Project 7/22/25

Save Neighborhood Schools – Say No to Private School Vouchers!

Public schools welcome and serve all children in local communities for free. They provide vital access to education and services for the whole community. They teach children and young people the fundamentals of civic engagement and provide special education services, adult role models, and extracurricular activities. Local public schools also contribute to vibrant communities by providing gathering spaces, polling places, hometown sports teams, and locations to hold adult education classes, health clinics, and other needed services.

Public Funds Public Schools 1/24/25 Public Funds Public Schools 1/24/25

Private School Vouchers on the Ballot on Election Day

Voucher programs, which divert scarce public resources to private schools, have been repeatedly shown to fund discrimination against students and families, fail to improve student outcomes, and undermine funding and resources for public schools, which serve the vast majority of children. They are also widely unpopular with voters. In fact, every time vouchers have been on the ballot, they have been rejected.

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