Week in Review: Despair v. Hope

Beacon of liberty or story of oppression—do you know what your kids are learning about America?

As a service to parents, school board members, and educators, the Goldwater Institute’s Van Sittert Center for Constitutional Advocacy compares two popular high school history books. Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States, a staple in as many as 1 in 4 public school history classrooms nationwide, casts America’s founders as manipulative elites and the Constitution as a tool of control. On the other hand, Wilfred McClay’s Land of Hope: An Invitation to the Great American Story tells the American story as one of struggle and triumph—an imperfect nation striving toward its ideals of liberty and equality.

With America’s civic literacy getting worse as each new generation slowly forgets more of its own history, this report underscores the urgent need to reevaluate the historical texts taught in classrooms.

Which version of history will shape the next generation?

Read more here.

Families Need Choice

Parents—not politicians or bureaucrats—know their children best.

That mindset guides Goldwater’s work to defend parental rights—and our work is paying dividends around the nation. This National School Choice Week, we’re celebrating the tens of millions of families who are free to choose an education that truly meets their child’s unique needs in the 10 states where Goldwater has made universal school choice a reality.

Teachers unions, progressive politicians, and their allies in the legacy media keep recycling the same tired rhetoric about school choice—but Goldwater is debunking those myths and standing behind parents every step of the way. As Goldwater Senior Fellow Jonathan Butcher writes: “With outdated arguments out of the way, [school choice opponents] can finally consider why National School Choice Week celebrates the research and experiences demonstrating that choice is essential for student success in school and in life.”

Read more here.

Fiscal Mismanagement at Its Worst

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs’ latest budget proposal attacks school choice while failing to account for $800 million. It’s fiscal mismanagement at its worst, Goldwater Director of Education Policy Matt Beienburg writes in the Arizona Republic.

Arizona families are struggling with crime, housing, and education—but Gov. Hobbs is too busy waging war on parents who want the best for their kids instead of fixing real problems. Her recently released budget plan seeks to tear down Arizona’s ESA program, the most successful school choice program in the country, even as it fails to account for more than $800 million in statutorily required spending.

“Gov. Hobbs has sent a clear message as to where her priorities lie: progressive politics trump the concerns of Arizona’s families,” Beienburg adds.

Read more here.