Tag: CHOOSE Act

Students accepted into Alabama’s education savings accounts under the CHOOSE Act will have more choices next year as school districts opt into the program.

Governor Kay Ivey recently honored a specific family that has chosen to participate in the state's school choice, Education Savings Account system, the CHOOSE Act, highlighting the strides she believes the additional funding has provided.

Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) executive director Heath Harmon recently stated that the association would comply with the law recently signed by Gov. Kay Ivey, clarifying the participation of student-athletes who receive funds from the state's school choice program.

Gov. Kay Ivey signed legislation into law on Tuesday, granting participants in the state’s school choice system protection from discrimination when participating in high school athletics after Ivey and other state leaders filed a lawsuit last year.

During a Wednesday press gaggle with reporters, House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) said the quadrennium "has been really strong for Alabama," citing the passage of tax cuts, the CHOOSE Act, the Back the Blue Act and more.

The Alabama House of Representatives passed Senate legislation allowing participants in a new school choice program to sue the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) in certain eligibility disputes.

Governor Kay Ivey on Wednesday announced that Alabama’s education savings account program — the CHOOSE Act — had a record number of applicants in its second year.

During Friday's broadcast of WVNN's "The Dale Jackson Show," State Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur) discussed legislation that will allocate additional funding to school choice purposes.

The deadline for families to apply for Alabama’s school choice program is March 31.

Regulation cannot quietly appear simply because families participate in an education funding program. Yet the current narrative suggests otherwise – that homeschool families who accept education funds are somehow ushering in regulation or contributing to the loss of homeschooling freedom. That claim places an unfair burden on families who are simply trying to make the best educational decisions for their children.

If Alabama taxpayers invest approximately $15,000 per child, who should decide how that investment is used? If we believe parents have the primary right to direct the education of their child, should funding reflect that belief?

Doug and Marinella Davis are sharing their homeschool story as part of an ongoing series from Governor Kay Ivey’s office spotlighting those using the CHOOSE Act.

There’s criticism that CHOOSE applicants are overwhelmingly white or overwhelmingly from higher-income areas, leaving lower-income, minority students stranded in a failing system. But once the CHOOSE application opens to families of any income, there will be no barrier – except parents.

Dozens of school aged children and their parents braved the cold weather and loud noise of capital construction to gather on the steps of the Alabama State House Wednesday morning for Education Freedom Day hosted by AFP and API.

During an interview with Mobile radio's FM Talk 106.5, House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) said he anticipated the 2024 CHOOSE Act would ultimately make Alabama one of the "strongest" school choice states in the country.

Governor Kay Ivey announced on Tuesday in her final State of the State address that she’s budgeting an increase for the state’s new education savings account program.

Jones acknowledged having "real disagreements" on education policy and specifically cited the school choice legislation.

One suspects that special interests – the defenders of CON laws, the education establishment, the AHSAA – will prove less accommodating than Kris Kringle. But then, serious policy reform was never supposed to be easy. It requires not the magic of Christmas morning, but the harder work of persuasion, legislation, and sustained political will. 

Governor Kay Ivey announced on Wednesday that the CHOOSE Act family application portal access date information is available on the program’s updated website, where Alabama families can sign up for the state’s education savings account (ESA) program for the 2026-2027 academic year.

During Friday's broadcast of Huntsville radio WVNN's "The Dale Jackson Show," State Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur) spoke about the decreasing number of public school students in Alabama.

Governor Kay Ivey is celebrating the success of the CHOOSE Act by spotlighting families who are successfully using the program. To date, she’s highlighted three families: the Carbonells in Birmingham, the McDades in Montgomery, and the Siemenses from Dothan.

Calhoun County Schools officials are concerned about the continued decline in student enrollment, which will lead to fewer teachers and staff supplied by the state.

If we truly want microschools to thrive, we must start funding them as serious enterprises, not side projects.

On a recent episode of “1819 News: The Podcast,” Lieutenant Gov. Will Ainsworth heavily criticized the AHSAA for their decision to double down on the rule stating that transfer students who accept CHOOSE Act funding must sit out a year before competing in athletics.

It’s time to replace the AHSAA. Any organization that openly breaks the law, ignores parents, and harms children’s opportunities has lost the right to lead.

Lawmakers will likely consider Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA)-related legislation in the 2026 session, according to State Sen. Donnie Chesteen (R-Geneva).

A ninth-place finish is cause for measured satisfaction, not complacency. The real test lies ahead: whether we have the resolve to build upon this foundation and create an educational system worthy of our considerable promise.