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Heritage Foundation Report Misses the Mark

A recent report by the Heritage Foundation documents the difficulty military parents have in obtaining a quality education for their children as they move from base to base during the course of a military career. Citing a study and survey sponsored by the Collaborative for Student Success as part of their rationale, the Heritage authors conclude by calling for shifting the $1.3 billion federal Impact Aid program into parent-controlled education savings accounts.

The Collaborative for Student Success does not support such a counterproductive measure to address the needs of military parents. As firm advocates of public education, we believe that this would undercut the very institution that the vast majority of military parents, and indeed all American parents, rely upon.

Rather than gut public education, we want to fix it for military parents. As our study with the Lexington Institute underscores, we believe that these measures will greatly strengthen the education of military-connected students:

  • Continued strengthening of comparable content standards, to help lessen the educational disruptions for military students when they move.
  • Policies that allow military families to send children to school in a nearby district, not just the one in which they live.
  • Full implementation of the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children, which is designed to resolve education transition issues.
  • A high prioritization of family education concerns by military leaders whenever possible.

Click here to view a statement from the National Association of Federally Impacted Schools (NAFIS) on the report.

About the Collaborative for Student Success

At our core, we believe leaders at all levels have a role to play in ensuring success for K-12 students. From ensuring schools and teachers are equipped with the best materials to spotlighting the innovative and bold ways federal recovery dollars are being used to drive needed changes, the Collaborative for Student Success aims to inform and amplify policies making a difference for students and families.

To recover from the most disruptive event in the history of American public schools, states and districts are leveraging unprecedented resources to make sure classrooms are safe for learning, providing students and teachers with the high-quality instructional materials they deserve, and are rethinking how best to measure learning so supports are targeted where they’re needed most. 

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