Senator McCormick and Secretary McMahon Join School Choice Advocates for Pennsylvania Education Roundtable
On Monday, June 15, the American Federation for Children Growth Fund hosted an education roundtable with Senator Dave McCormick (R-PA), U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, and education leaders to discuss important issues related to education freedom and school choice in Pennsylvania, and beyond.
Parents across Pennsylvania agree; education freedom is essential to ensuring future generations thrive. Today, thousands of students in Pennsylvania have received access to school choice in the form of tax credit scholarships (EITC and OSTC, now over 100,000 students) and public charter schools (170,000 students). Unfortunately, many students remain on the outside looking in due to limitations of these options (nearly 70,000 for the combined scholarships and well over 50,000 for charter schools).
More can be done to bring true education freedom to families who urgently need an option, a message that participants of the roundtable shared.
In addition to K-12 education freedom at the state level, starting in 2027, the Education Freedom Tax Credit (EFTC) creates a dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit of up to $1,700 for individuals who contribute to K-12 scholarship granting organizations (SGOs), with the potential to unlock transformative new school choice funding in every state. Currently, 31 states have opted in or signaled support for the EFTC; however, Pennsylvania has not yet opted in. All the roundtable participants urged Governor Shapiro to opt in immediately to bring these new resources to Pennsylvania families.
Select remarks:
U.S. Senator Dave McCormick:
“Last Wednesday, the Treasury Department previewed forthcoming guidance on the new federal scholarship tax credit that Congress passed as part of the Working Families Tax Cuts. This is an important first step in what could be a generational opportunity to change the trajectory of education in Pennsylvania and across the country.
As the son of two Pennsylvania public school teachers, and as a proud product of Pennsylvania public schools myself, I have enormous respect for the teachers and schools that change children’s lives every day.
I also know that access to a great education levels the playing field. It gives students a fair shot at the American dream. And at a time when AI is beginning to transform nearly every part of our economy and society, it is more important than ever that students learn how to think clearly, adapt, and solve hard problems for themselves.
Respect for our schools also requires honesty about where things stand. Too many children in Pennsylvania are falling behind in reading and math, and too often the students with the fewest options are the ones paying the highest price.
That is not a reason to give up. It is a reason to do more. Families across Pennsylvania are asking for more options, more flexibility, and more support.
That is why one of my proudest votes in the Senate was for the Educational Freedom Tax Credit. This is a major accomplishment for parents, students, and the future of education in America. It is about giving families another tool, expanding opportunity, and making sure more students can find the environment and support that works for them.
The success of this effort will depend on what happens next. Pennsylvania needs to opt in. Families need to know this opportunity exists. Scholarship organizations need clarity. State leaders need to understand what is at stake. And those of us in public office need to hear directly from the people closest to the students.”
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon:
“This program is the largest expansion of education freedom in our nation’s history, offering a dollar-for-dollar tax credit of up to $1,700 for donations to scholarship-granting organizations, or SGOs.
Those donations translate directly into critical education support, such as scholarships, tutoring, and services that meet students exactly where they are, whether they attend public or private school.
I don’t want any state to miss the chance to seize this opportunity for their students, which is why I’m so grateful to leaders like you who champion the Keystone State’s expansion of education freedom.
This federal tax credit builds directly on Pennsylvania’s state-level tax credit programs, which for years have opened doors to education freedom for thousands of families in Pennsylvania.”
Reverend Josh Robertson, CEO, Black Pastors United for Education
“This federal tax credit scholarship is unprecedented. It’s the first time in our history that we are making this type of investment into Americans. And it is so important in low-income neighborhoods to leverage these resources to start, scale, and sustain programs that can help our children overcome the reading and math deficit that we have in our country.
Now is the time for courageous leadership. We need our governor to opt in to this federal tax credit scholarship. It is one of a kind.”
Myles Slade-Bowers, Pennsylvania School Choice Beneficiary
“My mom sat me down two weeks before my sophomore year, and she said, ‘son, there’s not another dime that we could spare to continue going forward.’ And in that moment, all my ambitions, academic goals, and the relations that I’ve had seemed to fade away. And that’s when I received the lifeline in the form of one of Pennsylvania’s tax credit scholarships, and that was the intervention moment that allowed me to continue to go to the best high school in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. And that changed my life. I vowed from that day forward; I would do everything in my power to ensure that every student around me had the exact same opportunities.”
Jenny Sved, Orthodox Union of Jewish Congregations and Teach PA
“We’re already seeing scholarships working for our Jewish day schools, and the prospect of having an additional opportunity for more schools to benefit more students and schools to from a scholarship like this would just be really huge.
The cost of Jewish day school has made wonderful people decide they’re going to move to Israel, where the cost of Jewish day school is free, only have three children, as opposed to four children. So, the cost of this education can really be prohibitive for people, and I would love to see this new opportunity come into Pennsylvania. I’m really hoping Governor Shapiro opts in, and I know there’s so much opportunity for all our students.”
Dr. Jo-Ann Semko, Superintendent of Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown Catholic Schools
“With the resources we have, we will do absolutely everything we can. EITC has changed the whole game for us. It allows us to take kids out of poverty and show them the possibilities in this world for them. With the federal tax credit, I can’t even imagine what we could do with that coming on top of the EITC. We make sure that the monies that we get go to our poorest students first, and then we go up the line from there.”
Rob Delany, CEO, BLOCS
“The reality is that education is the most powerful tool that we have for breaking the cycle of poverty. These scholarships are wrapped in love. The Education Freedom Tax Credit is important because it democratizes how people can support education and invest in our children. You no longer have to be a wealthy person to invest in children.”
David Hardy, Founder, Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School
“I opened a Latin school in a poor neighborhood. We found that it worked for the kids in our neighborhood, just like it worked for kids in any other neighborhood. And we wound up sending more African-American boys from our school to college than any other high school in the state. People need more options.”
The roundtable discussion, in full, can be found here.
About AFC:
The American Federation for Children is the nation’s largest school choice advocacy organization and the most successful force for education freedom in America, passing over 200 laws across 32 states throughout our history. Our affiliated Super PAC, AFC Victory Fund, is the only nationwide Super PAC focused on advancing school choice.
