Education Freedom
Creating Opportunity for Every American Child
MISSION
The Education Freedom Campaign works to ensure rooted in our fundamental values. In this campaign, K-12 education policy experts promote school choice and produce sound research to help parents make informed decisions for their children. Our higher education experts work with our partners in government and in the marketplace to equip a new American workforce by eliminating bloat and incentivizing innovation and opportunity. We work with federal and state governments to ensure that these principles are implemented based on what is best for children, not bureaucrats. After all, parents are the first primary educators of their childing. They should be in the driver’s seat in educational decision making.
Focus Areas / Policy Pillars
- School Choice – Expanding parental rights and education freedom.
- Accountability through Transparency - Ensuring parents and policymakers have the information on curriculum, finances, safety, and academic outcomes that they need to make informed decisions.
- Limited Bureaucracy – Reining in bloated bureaucracy and compliance rules and focusing resources on academic achievement over ideological initiatives.
- Education Value – Reforming accreditation and return-on-investment standards, sharing risks and responsibilities, and supporting workforce development.
- Ending the Department of Education – Supporting legislation and rulemaking to devolve control and give block grants to states, as well as refocusing accreditation on quality control and outcomes and reforming student loans and debt.
- Free Expression – Promoting free speech and institutional viewpoint neutrality in higher education.
Team
Erika Donalds
Chair, Education Opportunity
Michael Shires, Ph.D.
Vice Chair of Education Opportunity
Sarah Hitchcock
Education Freedom Campaign Director
Christopher Schorr, Ph.D.
Director of the Higher Education Reform Initiative
James Paul, Ph.D.
Director of State Education Opportunity
Jovan Tripkovic
Policy Analyst, Higher Education Reform Initiative
Latest
Issue Brief
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April 21, 2026
Getting DEI out of IDEA: End Racial Quotas in Special Education
In November 2025, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) turned 50 years old. It provides states and school districts with $15.4 billion per year and requires schools to identify and address the needs of students with disabilities (Dragoo, 2026). In 2004, Congress reauthorized IDEA recognizing a concern that Black students were being identified with disabilities at higher rates than White students. Congress therefore required states to collect data from school districts to determine whether there is a “significant disproportionality” by race in special education identification or discipline (20 U.S.C. § 1418(d)).
Statement
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April 17, 2026
AFPI-GA Calls for the Return of Education Authority to the States
The America First Policy Institute’s Georgia Chapter (AFPI-GA) issued the following statement as the House Rules Committee blocked House Resolution 1789 from moving forward, which would support the dissolution of the U.S. Department of Education and the return of education authority to the states.
Statement
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April 16, 2026
Education Freedom Expands in Tennessee
Today, Erika Donalds, chair of Education Opportunity at the America First Policy Institute (AFPI), issued the following statement on the passage of Tennessee Senate Bill 2247 and House Bill 2532 which nearly doubles the number of Education Freedom Scholarships available to families across the state.
Podcast
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April 15, 2026
Truth Be Told: Why America’s Best Days Are Ahead with Secretary Linda McMahon
In the premiere episode of Truth Be Told, host Stacey Schieffelin welcomes Secretary of Education Linda McMahon for a candid, wide-ranging conversation about leadership, public service, women’s empowerment, and the future of American education.
Statement
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April 15, 2026
AFPI Celebrates Wins in the WFTC on Tax Day
On Tax Day 2026, American families and workers are experiencing the impact of President Trump’s the Working Families Tax Cuts Act (WFTC). Signed into law on July 4, 2025, this historic legislation is delivering wins for working families, small businesses, parents, seniors and farmers across the Nation. AFPI commends President Trump and America First leaders in Congress for putting more money back in the hands of hardworking Americans.
Topics
- Protecting Kids Online
- Rural Prosperity
- Criminal Justice & Public Safety
- The Courts
- Government Weaponization
- Merit-based Employment
- Debt
- Inflation
- Trade
- Work & Jobs
- Post Secondary Education
- K-12 Education Freedom
- Public School Transparency
- American Only Elections
- Clean Votes
- Secure Elections
- Energy
- Environment
- Budget, Spending, & Taxes
- Transgenderism
- Border & Immigration
- Defense
- Marriage, Family, & Children
- Faith & Religious Liberty
- Sanctity of Life
- Parental Rights
- Protect Women’s Sports
186
issues-new
Videos
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Truth Be Told: Why America’s Best Days Are Ahead with Secretary Linda McMahon
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A New Era for College Sports: The Saving College Sports Proposal Outshines the SCORE and SAFE Acts
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How Mississippi Beat the Odds: Gov. Tate Reeves on Literacy Reform and the School Choice Revolution
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Secretary McMahon, AFPI, TPUSA, & Partners Launch New Civics Coalition
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AFPI Files Title IX Lawsuit to Protect Oregon Girls’ Rights
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