Dallas City Wire

Rep. Brian Harrison recently accused school board trustees of pushing against education freedom in the Midlothian Independent School District (MISD). The Texas Freedom Caucus revealed a resolution was brought up to prevent school vouchers, education savings accounts and taxpayer savings grants that "reduce public school funding." The Freedom Caucus cited two polls that show a majority of Republican voters are against these types of proposals.

"Any school board trustee who votes against education freedom is saying they don’t trust parents and is turning their back on the voters who elected them," Harrison wrote in an April 17 Twitter post.

According to an April 16 tweet by the Texas Freedom Caucus, "taxpayer-funded lobbyists are pushing @MidlothianISD and other ISDs to pass a resolution preventing education freedom." The resolution called on the Texas legislature to "reject any diversion of public dollars to private entities in the form of education savings accounts."

The Texas Freedom Caucus is against this proposal and any similar ones being brought up in school districts around Texas. They "stand with parents" against such proposals and said "88% of Texas GOP primary voters who support #schoolchoice [are] in strong opposition to these resolutions." The Freedom Caucus also included a headline: "Rural, Minority Texans Favor School Choice, According to University of Houston Poll" and another headline from UT Tyler: "60% of Texas voters support school choice."

Austin Journal reported that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said, "Enhancing success among students using ESAs does not prevent the many millions of students in traditional schools from thriving and excelling," claiming that while ESA funds can be used for private school tuition and outside entities, this system encourages traditional schools to meet the needs of parents. Bush went on to say Florida's traditional public schools have improved since parents were given more options.

Citing another study: "Rerouting the Myths of Rural Education Choice" by Ron Matus and Dava Hankerson for Step Up For Students, Bush said, "In the past decade, the number of students in Florida’s 30 rural counties accessing education outside their district school increased by 10.6%." Over time, non-district schools more than doubled, creating more options for parents.

"This has enhanced every child’s chance to be in a setting where they can achieve success," Bush said. However, Bush clarifies against the position choice opponents take, that public schools will suffer as parents turn to private schools. He said this is false as data from Florida shows most families (83%) continue to choose public schools. The authors of the report argue the claim that school choice won't work in rural areas is a myth proven false by Florida's history of a successful ESA program.

According to the Texas Tribune, lawmakers in Texas are debating on implementing a school choice program involving ESAs. Sen. Brandon Creighton filed Senate Bill 8, which would create an ESA program with $8,000 per student while maintaining a "held harmless" clause for rural districts. The bill is moving to the Texas Senate floor for debate after passing through the Senate Education Committee.

“Educating the next generation of Texans is the most fundamental responsibility we have, and I authored Senate Bill 8 to place parents, not government, squarely in the center of the decisions for their children. Giving parents the power to determine the best school for their child will encourage competition and innovation, ensuring that each Texas student has the opportunity to succeed,” Creighton said, according to Forest Country News.

He addressed concerns that an ESA bill would hurt rural public schools: “Anyone who creates a narrative that you can’t lift up public schools and teachers and also provide educational empowerment for families is just creating a narrative that’s false and divisive."