RALEIGH — National School Choice Week 2016, an educational freedom campaign from Jan. 24-30, will host 16,140 education-related events this year, the largest series in its history, said NSCW president Andrew Campanella.
A nonpartisan event promoting educational freedom and opportunity, over its five-year history NSCW has seen all 50 states advance alternatives for parents seeking the best education for their children, Campanella said. NSCW held 150 events in 2011, its founding year; that number jumped in 2015 to 11,082.
The hike in awareness is due — in part — to a recent increase in national support for educational opportunity that is no longer seen as a partisan issue, according to Democratic strategist and Fox News analyst Joe Trippi.
“As the idea of choice becomes more popular across party lines, it’s getting less and less controversial,” Trippi said during a Jan. 19 conference call with reporters. “This was more controversial five or six years ago. But as Democrats and Republicans start to move toward [supporting] more choice — and see less controversy around it — you see [an increase] in events.”
Each of these regionally based school choice awareness campaigns is organized and funded locally. More than 13,000 will be sponsored or hosted by schools of all kinds —private and public, including charter schools, Campanella said.
“One thing we make sure not to do here at National School Choice Week is to preference one type of school over another,” Campanella said, noting charter schools, tuition vouchers, and tax credits among the options that should be more widely available. “We’re simply saying, ‘these are the options. These are the choices you have.’”
During the week, North Carolina NSCW advocates will host 250 events across the state. For more information, visit
this site.
Kari Travis (@karilynntravis) is an associate editor of Carolina Journal.