Today Arizona governor Doug Ducey is signing a universal school-choice law that gives parents $7,000 per child per year to spend at any educational institution of their choice, including private schools and religious schools. Catholic schools in Arizona will be among the many beneficiaries of this innovation. In City Journal (Aug 16), Christopher Rufo interviews Governor Ducey on the landmark legislation. A link to the article, titled “Putting Parents Back in Charge,” is at bottom, but first some quotes from Rufo’s interview:

• Ducey says a system where tax money follows students puts “parents in charge of their child’s education” and brings “market principles to bear that provide higher quality at lower cost, with greater return on investment.” He foresees it also “will make for happier children.”
• Ducey believes “Covid changed everything in K-12 education. Parents were able to see what their children were being taught via Zoom videos. They were also able to see the lack of rigor and expectation in these classrooms,” as well as “pervasive CRT” (critical race theory).
• A group called Black Mothers Forum, and “the black pastors of Arizona—almost all of them registered Democrats—were part of the coalition that helped us get this over the finish line,” Ducey says of the legislation.

The link: https://www.city-journal.org/putting-parents-back-charge