David Zalubowski, Associated Press file A recent open letter from leaders of several teachers unions urges Democratic governors to reject participation in a new federal tax-credit scholarship program. They argue that doing so is necessary to protect public education.
But that argument misses the heart of what this law actually does, and it sets up a zero-sum game that doesn’t exist.
This new law does not normalize vouchers as the letter says. It normalizes something far more fundamental: parents being empowered to make educational choices for their children, regardless of whether they attend a private or a public school. That should not be controversial. Parents know their children best.
For too long, too many education debates have centered on institutions rather than children. We talk about systems, sectors, funding streams, and political platforms. But families do not experience education that way. They experience it one child at a time.
A mother trying to help her son learn to read is not thinking about whether her decision fits neatly into a political category. A father looking for a safer or more nurturing school for his daughter is not trying to weaken public education. A public school parent seeking after-school tutoring for a child in reading just wants the child to read better. Ironically that parent may actually be strengthening public education by improving outcomes that will reflect well on the school.
The point is that parents are simply trying to do what parents have always done: make the best decisions they can for the children they love.
This law also does not legitimize a scheme to benefit private interests, as the letter claims. Rather, it simply benefits children.
And the good news is that it will be available to help 90 percent of all children, including public school children. This is not a vision of education that leaves some children behind or treats opportunity as the privilege of a few. It is a recognition that children in every kind of school may need support, and that all families meeting the income threshold requirements should have access to resources that help them flourish.
My organization has seen for more than 25 years what happens when families are trusted. A scholarship may look modest on paper, but to a parent, it represents the difference between being able and not being able to provide what their child needs.
The union leaders’ letter warns that allowing families more educational options will weaken public education. But supporting parents is not an attack on public schools. Let’s not buy into the argument that honoring public education requires denying families other options when those options are best for their children or denying public school parents access to additional resources that could benefit their children.
We should be able to say both things clearly: Public schools matter, and parents matter. Strong schools matter, and so does the freedom of families to choose the right school or additional educational resources for their child.
The question before governors is not whether they stand with public schools or private schools. The question is whether they stand with families or whether they are going to watch a lot of donor money leave their states to help children in other states whose governors have opted in.
Our country has always placed great faith in the ability of ordinary people to make important decisions for themselves and for those they love. Education is one of the most important of those decisions. When we trust parents, we are not abandoning our public schools. We are honoring the people most responsible for their children’s well-being which is good for all of society.
We look forward to helping all children — children in public schools, private schools, and every community where parents are working to build a better future. That is not privatization or abandonment. It is faith in families, one of the best hopes we have for strengthening American education.
Darla M. Romfo is President and CEO of the Children’s Scholarship Fund, a national scholarship-granting organization providing the families of more than 38,000 children with K-12 scholarships in the 2025-26 school year.
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