My son was attending a public middle school, then the COVID pandemic happened. He was sent home to learn off of a computer. His school day went from eight hours to fifteen minutes. Because I know the value of an education, I started looking for a place where I could send him to get an education taught by actual teachers. I took a tour of the Bishop McCort Catholic School and fell in love with the atmosphere, the curriculum, the graduation rate, etc.

My only hesitation was the cost because I still had to pay my outrageous property taxes to the district in which we live. After meeting with school officials, they were able to find financial aid and scholarships which brought the tuition down to a level that was affordable to my family. This has made a huge difference in his life. He now has to study for the advanced placement classes that he takes that were not even available at the public school that he previously attended. I feel certain that he will be able to attend the college of his choice because of his transfer to a private catholic school.

“It’s unconscionable to me that we don’t have the freedom of school choice in our country.”

One word: “freedom”. Because of the great country that we all live in we all enjoy many freedoms. Religion, speech, press, assembly, and the right to petition the government are of our guaranteed freedoms. Shouldn’t education be one of them? It’s unconscionable to me that we don’t have the freedom of school choice in our country. No one but the child’s parents should make decisions for them because they should know what’s best for their kids. Education should not be guided by territories drawn on a map! Why do I pay high property taxes to a school district that my son doesn’t attend? We must pass legislation to stop this madness and allow every family the right to choose their own educational path.