Parental rights are non-negotiable.
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Happy National School Choice Week! 🎉 Each January, we join parents, schools, and organizations to celebrate educational freedom by putting kids first and providing parents with education options. Putting kids first starts with giving parents leverage by funding students, not bureaucratic systems.
IWF storyteller and mother of three, Denise Ladson Johnson, joined a panel hosted by Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) to discuss how school closures and learning loss are affecting students in South Carolina. Watch here. ([link removed])
We hope you enjoy this special education-themed issue of the Weekly Capsule!
** CHAMPION MESSAGE ([link removed])
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“If the public schools are failing, parents should have the right to vouchers to use to choose their education of choice."
— Cristina, parent from California ([link removed])
** HURTING NOT HELPING ([link removed])
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** Arlington Schools Are Wrong To Buck Youngkin’s Mask Policy ([link removed])
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The decision of Arlington County’s public schools to maintain their school mask mandate despite an executive order from new Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin ignores the “public” part of “public schools” in several respects. Youngkin’s executive order still allows parents to have their children wear masks ([link removed]) if they wish. But it places the choice back where it belongs — with the parents, not the government bureaucracy. Read more. ([link removed])
** Just In: Letter To My Children’s Fairfax, VA School ([link removed]) Read ([link removed])
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** DID YOU KNOW ([link removed])
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** Being a Military Kid Is a Privilege ([link removed])
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Earlier this week it came to light that a high school in Fairfax County in Virginia played "privilege" bingo where one of the squares was "military kid.” It is a privilege to be a military kid. Military kids have the privilege of learning what it means to sacrifice for our country at a very young age ([link removed]) . It is a gift to learn how to cope with worrying if the person you love is safe while going about your everyday activities. It’s so luxurious that only a mere 25% or 1 in 4 military children have an emotional-behavioral challenge associated with deployment. Read more. ([link removed])
** Spotlight: Fact Check: Are Schools Closing? ([link removed]) Read ([link removed])
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** IN THE NETWORK ([link removed])
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** The Education System Virginia Parents Want ([link removed])
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Independent Women's Network hosted a live discussion with policy analysts Ginny Gentles, Inez Stepman, and several Virginia parents, including viral Loudoun County dad Brandon "Figure it out!" Michon, about continued school mask mandates and education reforms they hope to see in Virginia.
Catch the replay on the Network. Not an IWN member yet, what are you waiting for?
WATCH THE REPLAY ([link removed])
** Trending Now: The Next Era of Education Listen ([link removed])
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** TWO TRUTHS & A LIE ([link removed])
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** National School Choice Week ([link removed])
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National School Choice Week provides an annual opportunity to celebrate existing educational opportunities, educate parents about their options, and advocate for expanding school choice programs.
Can you identify which of the following is not true about school choice?
A. School choice programs are accountable to taxpayers and participating families.
B. School choice programs drain money from public education.
C. School choice benefits students with special needs.
CHECK YOUR ANSWERS ([link removed])
** [link removed] Thinks Podcast
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* New Episode: On this episode of She Thinks, Hannah Downey, policy director at PERC, discusses the free-market approach to environmentalism. Listen to it here. ([link removed])
Listen the episode on your favorite podcast app:
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* Next Episode: On Friday, Charlotte Whelan, IWF policy analyst, joins She Thinks to discuss January’s policy focus: Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG). Hear it here. ([link removed])
** CAPSULE REVIEW ([link removed])
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** Fairfax Schools Suspend Kids, Call Police as System Defies Virginia Governor on Masks ([link removed])
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Fairfax County Public Schools made a show of defying Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s order that schools respect parental rights on masking, with an assistant principal standing in front of the school to suspend students without masks, and a public relations staffer who said the media was not allowed to watch the conflict between state and local governments play out.
READ MORE ([link removed])
** We Can Fight Racism, School Choice a Great Place To Start ([link removed])
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As a black parent with a child in public school, I’m a huge advocate for parents having access to as many options in their children’s education as possible. School choice offers parents greater control over a child’s education by breaking the link between residence and school. It additionally serves as a means of accountability for the local education system.
READ MORE ([link removed])
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