Kevin Kiley Criticizes Newsom's School Choice Policies Amidst COVID-19 Lockdowns

Public Education System in Need of Disruption

• 💡 The current public education system is failing students, with results worsening year after year despite increased spending.
• 🎯 Positive disruption is occurring in other parts of the country, leading to improved outcomes for all students.

Contrasting Education Outcomes: California vs. Florida

• 📊 Florida leads the nation in education outcomes, typically ranking first.
• 📉 California, which restricts school choice, ranks among the worst, despite significant budget increases.
• ⚠️ During COVID-19, California had the longest school shutdown in the country.

The Hypocrisy of School Choice

• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Governor Gavin Newsom, who ordered school shutdowns, sent his children to in-person private schools.
• ⚖️ Politicians and advocates who choose elite private schools for their own children often deny similar choices to less fortunate families.
• 🚫 Opposition to vouchers, scholarships, and education savings accounts often stems from a general opposition to school choice itself.

The "Money Follows the Student" Model

• 🚀 A new model is emerging where money follows the student, extending opportunities to families without other options and catalyzing system-wide change.
• 🏫 Arguments against charter schools, such as claims they can turn away students or are primarily for-profit, are largely untrue; charters are open, tuition-free, and mostly non-profit.

Bipartisan Support and Future Hope

• 🤝 While the Democratic party is divided on charter schools, there has been bipartisan support for successful charter networks like Success Academy and KIPP.
• 🌟 The focus should shift from simply increasing funding to implementing actual reforms and expanding school choice options.
• ✅ There is hope for finding common ground to support forms of school choice that benefit millions of children and families.