Indianapolis, IN, USA
On July 20, 2022, a group of Republican governors convened in Indianapolis, Indiana, to announce a coordinated effort to expand school choice options and increase parental involvement in education. The new initiative, known as the “Empowered Parents Act,” aims to provide families with greater control over their children’s education, allowing them to select from a broader range of educational options, including charter schools, private schools, and homeschooling.
Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, who hosted the event, was joined by fellow conservative governors such as Ron DeSantis of Florida, Kristi Noem of South Dakota, and Greg Abbott of Texas. The governors emphasized that the initiative responds to growing concerns from parents who feel sidelined by the education system and want more influence over the curriculum and school environment their children experience.
“Parents know what’s best for their children, and they deserve the ability to choose the educational path that aligns with their values and priorities,” Governor Holcomb said in his opening remarks. “The Empowered Parents Act is about giving families more options, more transparency, and more control over their children’s future.”
The proposed legislation would allow parents to use public funds to pay for private school tuition or homeschooling, increase funding for charter schools, and create educational savings accounts (ESAs) that give parents the flexibility to allocate funds for tutoring, educational resources, and extracurricular activities. In addition, the bill would require schools to disclose detailed information about the curriculum and teaching materials, empowering parents to make more informed decisions.
The push for expanded school choice comes as conservative leaders continue to raise alarms about what they perceive as a leftward shift in public education, particularly with regard to the teaching of social justice issues, gender identity, and critical race theory (CRT). In several states, including Florida and Texas, Republican governors have already implemented bans on CRT and other controversial content, arguing that schools should focus on teaching fundamental academic subjects rather than advancing political ideologies.
Governor DeSantis, who has made school choice a cornerstone of his administration, praised the initiative as a way to increase access to quality education for all children, regardless of their background.
“School choice is about giving every child the opportunity to succeed,” DeSantis said. “It’s about ensuring that parents have the freedom to make decisions based on what is best for their children, not what is most convenient for the education bureaucracy.”
The proposal has drawn support from parent advocacy groups such as the American Federation for Children, which argues that expanding school choice will lead to better educational outcomes, particularly for low-income families. The organization also believes that the bill will help increase competition among schools, resulting in improved educational standards.
However, the initiative has faced criticism from teachers’ unions and progressive education groups, who argue that diverting public funds to private schools and charter schools undermines public education and creates inequities in the system. Critics also contend that it could further fragment the education system, making it harder to address issues such as racial segregation and disparities in educational outcomes.
“We should be focused on improving public education for all students, not creating a two-tiered system where only the privileged have access to quality education,” said Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers.
As the debate over school choice and parental control intensifies, the outcome of the “Empowered Parents Act” will likely have significant implications for the future of education policy across the nation. With midterm elections approaching, Republican governors are positioning education reform as a key issue in their efforts to challenge the influence of progressive policies in public schools.
