Public Education for All

This op-ed was written by Commissioner Frank Edelblut and originally published in The New Hampshire Union Leader on December 21, 2024.

That I am a believer in the value of New Hampshire’s Education Freedom Accounts for children and taxpayers alike is no surprise. Over the years there have been several public surveys that also show overwhelming support for this important publicly funded education program.
 
On November 5, 2024, another poll was conducted – this time by the voters of New Hampshire. Again, we can see the overwhelming support for this important tool for families and educators to make sure that each child has the opportunity to succeed and achieve their own bright future. 
 
Of course, that survey I am referring to is the election. The results tell the story. Candidates for political office across the state that enthusiastically supported Education Freedom Accounts were rewarded for their support of children. Seats were gained in the House and the Senate, in some cases with unexpected success. Candidates opposing children and families access to important educational options through the Education Freedom Account program did not fare well in the election.
 
In these campaigns, those candidates opposing options for our families tried to pit one public education option, our traditional public schools, against another public education option, our Education Freedom Accounts. These arguments falsely assume that these two public education options for our families cannot coexist and assume that Education Freedom Accounts are an existential threat to our traditional public schools where the majority of our children are and will likely continue to be educated. 
 
This strawman argument does not serve the citizens of New Hampshire well. It is built on a foundation of many faulty premises that assume these programs cannot and should not coexist.
 
Let’s start with the growing number of our traditional public schools participating in the Education Freedom Account program. Yes, you heard that right. Increasingly, our public schools are offering educational opportunities to children enrolled in the Education Freedom Account program. We are excited to see our traditional public schools signing up to allow families that live outside of the district to use Education Freedom Account dollars to purchase instructional options not otherwise available to them.
 
Another of the many faulty premises heard on the campaign trail was that Education Freedom Accounts somehow “take money” from our public schools – again trying to pit one public program against another. 
 
Since the introduction of Education Freedom Accounts in 2021, both state and local funding for traditional public schools has increased by more than $400 million from state and local tax resources. This includes expanded state programs through extraordinary needs grants, fiscal disparity aid, and hold-harmless grants. This does not even include the more than $650 million that was provided through pandemic relief funds. For the 2024 school year, for the first time ever, total education spending passed $4 billion. At the same time, Education Freedom Account funding increased from $9,004,046 to $23,759,935, an increase of nearly $14 million. 
 
Since the start of the Educational Freedom Account Program, New Hampshire has successfully supported both its traditional public schools and educational options for those needing them. 
 
This leads nicely into the final strawman addressed here, that the Education Freedom Account program is bad for taxpayers. This silly argument preys on individuals’ unfamiliarity with the two programs. A traditional public school costs taxpayers more than $20,000 per student each year. An Education Freedom Account costs taxpayers slightly more than $5,000 per student each year, and it offers an educational option that families are choosing because it is the best fit for their child. It is not hard to see where taxpayers get a better deal.
 
Fortunately, taxpayers are not easily duped. It would be more accurate if those who campaigned against Education Freedom Accounts simply stated that they prefer the traditional school public education program over the Education Freedom Account public education program. And, that they don’t want the competition. At least that would be an honest conversation. It is fine for someone to prefer one program over the other, but that does not mean we should disrespect the choices of others.
 
Fortunately, we do not have to live in this binary either-or world. We can both support traditional public schools and Education Freedom Accounts. When we do, we support public education options that can meet the needs of all of our children. And when we do, we support public education for all. Giving families more choices will be the catalyst that helps public education satisfy the education needs of all students.