I was blessed to attend an amazing public elementary school in Columbus, Ohio. By the time I got to fifth grade, I was considered an advanced student, and it was time to start thinking about middle schools.
My older sibling went to a great local middle school in our district, but we weren’t within the attendance zone. The middle school our family was assigned to attend was failing like many others in the school district. My parents entered me into our district’s lottery program with the hopes of getting me into that school.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t selected.
What ensued was a scramble to save my education. My parents knew that my middle and high school years would determine if I would end up being successful or in jail just like so many young men who look like me.
After exhausting what I assumed to be our only options, I started to come to terms with the fact that unfortunately, I may be forced to attend a school that had already failed far too many students. But that summer, our YMCA day camp director told my parents about Ohio’s K-12 school choice programs.
Little did she know she had changed my life that day.
Immediately, my parents researched the program and found I was eligible to receive Ohio’s Ed Choice scholarship. Unfortunately, I was only able to get into one of the only schools that would take a student that late in the summer and had space available. It wasn’t the right fit.
The next semester I switched to a school that I would call home for the rest of my K-12 education career.
I earned a full ride scholarship to Miami University where I will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Global Diplomacy and Politics, as well as a minor in Spanish. None of this would have been possible had my family not been able to choose where I received my education.
Regardless of income, all families deserve the right to choose where their child is educated because parents and families know their students best!
Families want the best for their children, and they should be able to choose what will allow them to thrive, grow, and make a community.
Whether or not a student decides to go to college after graduating high school or to take a different path, each one deserves a firm academic background that will allow them to succeed wherever they go. If the choice is given to the families, it can be assured that every family and student can choose success over failure.
