School choice may sound like a way to empower parents; however, behind this marketing ploy is a slow, calculated effort to redirect public funds into the pockets of wealthy Americans while also controlling what our children learn to promote particular political agendas. And it has been decades in the making.

School choice seems benign at first, and even I, a former public school teacher, initially saw its appeal. Who doesn’t want what’s best for their children, and the ability to select the educational setting that allows their child to flourish?

However, after retiring from teaching last year, I started to connect the dots. One of the reasons I left education earlier than most, after 25 years, was because I was not only fed up with the politics inside and outside of public education, but I was also tired of feeling like my hands were tied because of decisions made by policy makers who had no idea what goes on in a classroom, let alone how to help students succeed. I knew what my students were capable of and how to help them learn; however, I was limited in what I could do because of out-of-touch policies. Unfortunately, the public doesn’t see that and ultimately blames the teacher when students fail. I worked too hard my entire career to shoulder that burden, so I left. 

Gov. Joe Lombardo has emphasized the importance of educational opportunity, and it’s easy to understand why school choice sounds appealing. But if the implementation results in greater inequity, we must ask: Who truly benefits? 

I have been out of the classroom for more than a year, which has allowed me to see the pattern that led me, and so many teachers like me, to exit the profession after sounding the alarm for years. But I completely missed the fact that not only was this all by design — school choice was the goal all along. 

Before we can talk about school choice, however, we must address testing and curriculum because they are grossly intertwined. Testing and curriculum is a multibillion-dollar industry, and in order to remain that way, it must keep the “consumer,” in this case, school districts and lawmakers, wanting more. Not coincidentally, these same companies lobby Congress to continue moving the goal post for public education in the name of education reform. But what they are actually doing is building a system that profits when students fail.

Even though the research tells us that a student’s ability to pass a standardized test is not necessarily the most accurate measure of student learning, it is a powerful weapon for those on the right who wish to dismantle public education in favor of voucher-supported private and charter schools. By demanding more testing, it leaves less time for teachers to teach, which sets students up to fail and justifies withholding funding from schools, resulting in overcrowded classrooms. And when classrooms are overcrowded, the teachers have an even harder time meeting the demands of the diverse group of learners in their classroom, and so on. 

Notice a pattern here? As Paulo Freire, educator, philosopher and author of Pedagogy of the Oppressed, warned: “Education either functions as an instrument to bring about conformity or freedom.” Public education is being strategically sabotaged one school at a time to ultimately privatize it, make a profit and create a system in which only the most privileged in our society have access to it. 

For instance, the average cost of a private secular school in Southern Nevada is approximately $20,000-30,000 per year, while vouchers only cover around $10,000, leaving families to bridge the gap. These vouchers are like “coupons for the rich,” as only wealthy families can afford the remainder of the tuition, while those in our most marginalized communities are still left behind. Furthermore, if we allow vouchers to be used for parochial schools, which are less expensive, we are allowing our public tax dollars to fund religious indoctrination.

And here is where it becomes even more insidious. 

Charter and private schools can pick and choose the students they accept without accountability or oversight, and conveniently dismiss students who have learning challenges, giving the impression that they are outperforming public schools. And while these institutions are sold as giving parents a "choice," what they are actually doing is redirecting public funding to private and religious schools to divert funds into the hands of the billionaires or third-party corporations who invest in them.  

If public education is weakened or defunded, and private institutions are empowered, it becomes easier for certain ideological agendas to shape what students learn, such as downplaying systemic racism, teaching creationism, or pushing nationalist interpretations of U.S. history. The concern here is not hyperbole; in fact, three Yale professors are leaving the country because they see the warning signs. When scholars of political oppression sound the alarm, we should listen.

So while the stated objective may be "parental control" or "freedom of choice," the real goal is to weaken public education and replace it with systems that silence dissent, propagate one particular ideological agenda by “distorting educational content,” censor the truth, and return to the days when only the wealthy had access to education and the working class was left to labor without opportunity. 

Public education is not perfect and absolutely needs attention; however, it is not unsalvageable, and any freedom-loving American should want to preserve it for it is “a universal human right” and the key to upholding our democracy.

Funneling taxpayer dollars into private and religious schools that are not held to the same accountability standards as public schools is dangerous and starts to feel less like school choice and more like authoritarianism. When we take away access to inclusive and truthful education, we limit the ability of future generations to think critically and challenge injustice, which seems to be the goal. 

But we have the power to stop this. Pay attention to the motives behind school choice, vote for school board members and legislators who recognize the importance of equitable access to education, and speak up for public schools as if our freedom and democracy depend on it, because they do. Preserving public education is not just a policy issue, but a safeguard against authoritarianism and a moral obligation to our children.

Kelly Edgar taught in the fifth largest school district in the country, Clark County, for 25 years, holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music education, and is a National Board Certified Vocal Music Teacher. She has also served as a mentor and cooperating teacher for preservice choral music teachers and was the task force chairperson for middle school choral music from 2010-2023.

The Nevada Independent welcomes informed, cogent rebuttals to opinion pieces such as this. They can be submitted here.