Texas Needs Universal Education Freedom

A staggering 65 percent of third- through eighth-graders in Fort Worth failed to meet minimum grade-level standards in core subjects such as reading, math, and science. This is nothing short of an educational catastrophe. Fort Worth mayor Mattie Parker captured the urgency when she said, “This moment calls for visionary, student-centered leadership that sets ambitious goals, crafts a strategic plan for academic excellence, and ensures every taxpayer dollar is spent wisely.” We couldn’t agree more.

Even more troubling, this failure rate marks a one-percentage-point drop in proficiency from the previous year, underscoring a worrying trend in student achievement that is raising alarms among local leaders. Even the highest-performing city council district (district 10) saw just 49 percent of students meeting basic grade-level academic standards.

Mayor Parker, in a letter addressed to the school-board members, pointed out Fort Worth’s consistent underperformance compared with other major Texas districts. For example, Fort Worth students trail eleven percentage points behind those in Dallas, 14 points behind Houston, and 18 points behind Brownsville. Those numbers starkly illustrate the need to reimagine our approach to education and embrace bold, transformative policies that empower parents and recognize the unique needs of every student.

That is why it is vital for Texas state lawmakers to come together and adopt universal education freedom, an idea championed by Governor Greg Abbott. In March, Governor Abbott summed it up perfectly: “A resounding number of Texans support educational freedom for every Texas family because they know that no child should be trapped in a failing school just because of their zip code.”

Unfortunately, Texas remains one of just 15 states without an education-freedom program for families. That places Texas alongside states such as California, Washington, and Oregon — hardly the company we typically seek to keep. Despite this, recent polling reveals that 72 percent of Texas parents support programs such as education scholarship accounts, not only for the increased opportunities they provide for their children, but also for the flexibility they offer parents to use funds for a variety of educational expenses such as tuition, textbooks, tutoring services, therapies for students with special needs, and more.

The historical success of education-freedom programs is driving states to adopt and expand these programs, ensuring that they are available to every family and student regardless of zip code, household income, race, gender, ethnicity, or any other factor. In fact, the new national Republican Party platform identifies universal education freedom as a core commitment. To date, twelve states have passed legislation providing these opportunities for their students, and Texas has the chance to become the 13th state when lawmakers reconvene next year.

It is crucial to remember that education freedom is not a partisan issue. Nationally, 66 percent of Democrats, 80 percent of Republicans, and 69 percent of independents support education freedom. In Louisiana, six Democratic House lawmakers voted to support the state’s new universal-education-freedom program. Moreover, lawmakers in Georgia, North Carolina, and California have recently switched parties because of their support for education freedom.

With more than 5 million K–12 students in Texas, lawmakers have the opportunity not only to put students first but to create America’s largest education-freedom program, positioning Texas as a national leader on behalf of students and families. It’s time for universal education freedom in the Lone Star State.

Lisa B. Nelson is the CEO of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in Arlington, Va. Stephen Moore is a co-founder of Unleash Prosperity, a senior visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation, and a senior economic adviser to the Trump campaign.