Public Schools

Since public schools are funded by federal, state, and local governments, the government has a say in how they are run — including curriculum and hiring. Public schools are state actors who must follow federal guidelines, including the U.S. Constitution, and uphold federal anti-discrimination laws.

Traditional public schools must accept all students; these students are assigned to schools based on where they live.

Charter schools are funded with tax dollars, much like traditional public schools. However, charter schools often do not fall within the jurisdiction of local public school districts and often have greater freedom to determine their operations and hiring. Depending on where they are located, charter schools may fall within or outside educational oversight by the state.

Magnet schools are public schools that offer specialized instruction (for example, in math & science, or the arts). Like charter schools and traditional public schools, they are taxpayer funded. Magnet schools are often selective, admitting students either through a competitive application process or a lottery.

Title VI

EMPOWER | Public School Resource…

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Title IX in K-12 Schools

What is Title IX? Title IX is a federal statute, ratified in 1972 as one of the Education Amendments, intended to protect students and other individuals from discrimination based on…

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Opting Out

What does it mean to opt out? Do parents have a right to opt children out of aspects of school? What is the process to opt out? What are my…

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Documenting Your Issue

Public and Private School Resource: If you’re going to raise concerns about something going on at a school — private or public — you have to document, document, document. What…

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The Big Picture

Knowledge is power. If you walk into a meeting confident that you know what you’re talking about, you’ll be more effective. Below are some resources that might be helpful as you think through these issues and how you might want to engage.

In addition, other topics you might want to research for your specific school include:

  • Budget: How much is being spent on specific programs/curriculum? Were any outside consultants brought in, for what reason, and at what cost? Do you believe that these resources might have been better spent elsewhere to benefit needy students? Where?
  • Education quality: How does your school perform? What percentage of children read at grade level? How about math and other subjects? How does that compare with your city/state/national statistics? If your school isn’t a top performer, is it really smart to direct time and resources away from basic learning?
  • Public Opinion: Has your school collected any feedback about its programming? If so, was it anonymous? If not, those results are probably inaccurate, seeing as a majority of Americans self-censor on controversial subjects out of fear.

Curriculum Alternatives

Click to find new alternatives to Social Studies, History, Diversity, and SEL…

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Recommended Reading List

Want to learn more about what we’re up against? We’ve compiled a reading list of the best articles discussing various aspects of the “woke revolution.” They range from personal testimonials…

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Understanding Woke Jargon

School activists employ an array of new words and phrases to describe their beliefs and goals. If you hear many of these phrases and can’t figure out what they mean,…

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Social Emotional Learning (SEL) 101

“Social and Emotional Learning.” It sounds so innocuous, so appropriate and positive. School officials and policy makers are asking: How could any parent oppose the development of social and emotional…

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Gender Ideology 101

In recent years, critical gender theory activists have turned America’s education system into a tool to reach millions of children in an effort to teach and promote gender ideology.

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Ethnic Studies 101

What is Ethnic Studies? Ethnic Studies is a subject that might be taught in your child’s school. It sort of sounds nice, until you realize that it seeks to…

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The War on Merit

Merit in K-12 education is under attack.  Media coverage over the last two years has focused on admission changes at highly selective high schools in an effort to quickly achieve…

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Grading for Equity

What is grading for equity? Traditional grading is based on subject mastery and accuracy, with elements of behavior including class participation and turning in work on time. Grading for…

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Affinity Groups

What is an affinity group? Affinity groups are school-sponsored groups that deliberately separate and divide students and staff into groups based on their skin color, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. Affinity…

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Know Your State

Knowledge Is Power. Do You Know How Your State System Works? From Noah Webster Educational Foundation…

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Understanding School Budget Jargon

Most school districts, counties and cities develop a new budget every year detailing how taxpayer dollars will be spent. Cities, counties and towns usually determine how much money school districts…

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Private Schools

Private schools educate about 10% of American schoolchildren. As non-government schools, they are a key component of civil society. And because they are private, they’re not subject to all of the regulations that govern public schools. As private actors, private schools set their own standards for admissions, hiring, curriculum and how the school is run.

Private schools contribute to education diversity, with options for parents to select the school that best meets their children’s individual needs or aligns with their family’s faith and values. More states are offering more school choice options than ever before.

Not all private schools are the same. So parents need to do their homework when choosing their child’s school, and stay involved along the way.

Private Schools 101

In December 2021, the New York Times published an op-ed about Randi Weingarten, the head of the largest public school teachers union in the United States, asking: “Can This Woman…

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History of Private Schools

Private Schools: From Their Origins through Today The first school in the modern-day United States predated the Pilgrims and was a private, independent school in a land not even a…

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Private School Associations, Accreditors and Oversight

Although private schools are independent, school associations, as well as accreditors, consultants and state and federal government education agencies, can influence private schools.  The various levers of influence include: 1.

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National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS)

Modern day indoctrination in private schools The National Association of Independent Schools, a nonprofit based in Washington D.C. representing over 1,600 private schools, offers a window…

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Private School Rights and Enrollment Contracts

Because private schools are considered private actors, they have broad discretion over their mission, vision and operations. Private school enrollment is a contractual relationship between a school and a family.

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Documenting Your Issue

Public and Private School Resource: If you’re going to raise concerns about something going on at a school — private or public — you have to document, document, document. What…

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Speaking Up at Private Schools

Since private school education is a choice, parents need transparency to make an informed decision before choosing their child’s private school and in order to stay informed along the way.

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