I’ve been attending State Board of Education meetings over the last three plus years. I’ve also had the pleasure of having lunch with 7 of the 10 current State Board of Education members. I’ve gotten to know them and their passions, having great conversations, and personally learning so much! I’ve had my deepest conversations on the subjects of school choice and lack of public involvement in spending decisions.
On the subject of school choice. My easy answer is that I’m all in for school choice. Now that I’ve been studying this subject for a few years, I’ve been won over by the logic and concerns of the very well studied, Michelle Dombroskey, to understand that Kansas does actually do school choice well! For the protection of privately funded (read as nongovernment run schools), it is especially important to protect what we have. Tomorrow, if I’m not happy with my child’s current education situation, I can choose to home educate, choose to private school educate (by the way, there is a HUGE nearly untouched private fund to help families afford this choice), and choose to send my child to public school.
I see the blessing and the possibilities that have been opened with the legislature providing school choice for out of district children. I have a lot more to learn about this subject, as it appears to me that there may be taxation/representation type issues at play (I suppose it’ll be to the judiciary to review those issues). Regardless, I see the blessings in the additional choices parents will now have for their children.
Beyond this however, and within the parameter of the state school board, I believe the next level of empowering families is to empower their voices (and the voices of the teachers they are working with) on their local school boards.
For many years, I believe that local schools have had to water down their standards that reflected the values of their community to accommodate an ever growing vocal minority.
Now we can go back to local schools representing the values of their communities an the majority of the students/families they serve, without the fears of being an offense and therefore sued. All students now have the option to seek educational experiences, even out of district if necessary, that represent their personal convictions and needs.