WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today is August 1st, the start of National Back to School Month. As students return to the classroom, parents this year will face not only the struggle of higher costs for school supplies due to inflation, but also important decisions on where to send their children to school.

Ginny Gentles, director of the Education Freedom Center at the Independent Women’s Forum, issued the following statement:

“Parents aren’t just shopping for backpacks and back-to-school supplies this year. They’re shopping for education options for their children. Parents are done with COVID-era policies that shut children out of classrooms and created a learning loss crisis. They’re done with activist school boards and education bureaucrats that prioritize radical ideologies over academics. The chaos in classrooms over the last three school years pushed support for education freedom to historic highs and is driving an exodus from traditional public school options. The need for expansive school choice policies is more urgent than ever, so students can access the education environment that works best for them and parents have the power and leverage they deserve.

Parents know they deserve power over their children’s education, but unfortunately school districts and unions hold all of the power without education freedom. Clearly it’s time to fund students, not systems, and develop policies that allow a wide variety of education options to flourish. As we head into another school year, our country must prioritize parental rights and educational freedom rather than bureaucratic systems and union control.”

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www.iwf.org

Independent Women’s Forum is dedicated to developing and advancing policies that aren’t just well intended but actually enhance people’s freedom, choices, and opportunities.

IWF’s Education Freedom Center (EFC) advances school choice and empowers parents by advocating for a more vibrant education marketplace. The EFC informs the public about the benefits of education freedom and highlights school choice as a solution to the power imbalance between parents and unresponsive school districts.