We talk to key figures in the education reform and school choice movement, from parents and policymakers to academics and activists, about the new definition of public education.
On this episode, senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Nina Rees, president and chief executive officer of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Founded in 2005, the alliance's stated mission is to ensure all children have access to a high-quality public education regardless of their ZIP code. Rees discusses the recent study by... Read more » The post podcastED: National charter school movement leader talks about charter performance and Oklahoma's approval of a religious charter school appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Brett Farley, executive director of the Catholic Conference of Oklahoma. Founded in 2017 by Oklahoma’s Catholic bishops, the Catholic Conference of Oklahoma serves as the official voice of the Catholic Church in Oklahoma on matters of public policy. The Conference operates at the intersection of faith... Read more » The post podcastED: Advocate says nation's first religious charter school will fill important niche appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Sue Luther of Largo, Florida, a former private school teacher and single parent of two military-dependent sons. Both boys have received state K-12 scholarships over the years. Her older son, Alexander, 15, was diagnosed at age 2 with severe autism spectrum disorder and currently receives... Read more » The post podcastED: ‘Multiple choice' Florida mom grateful for K-12 scholarship, robust education choice laws appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Amy Heflin, senior manager for STEM curriculum at Florida Virtual School. Heflin discusses a new high school course program in artificial intelligence and how it will offer students a foundational knowledge of AI and its applications. Her interview comes a day after FLVS, the nation's... Read more » The post podcastED: Florida Virtual School manager hopes new courses will teach students to embrace AI appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Rachel Hayon Sabbah, a nurse and mother of four daughters, including two who receive the Florida Family Empowerment Scholarship for students with Unique Abilities. Her eldest daughter, Elisheva, 8, has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and younger daughter Ahavah, 4, has experienced speech delays. Hayon Sabbah,... Read more » The post podcastED: Florida scholarship mom delighted with end to waitlist for children with unique abilities appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Diana Diaz-Harrison, a former teacher, television journalist and founder at Arizona Autism Charter School in Phoenix, the Southwest region's only tuition-free school specializing in best practices for students who are on the autism spectrum. Diaz-Harrison started the school in 2014 after her son, Sammy, who was... Read more » The post podcastED: Founder of Arizona charter school for children with autism seeks to take model national appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Doug Tuthill and Amy Graham of Step Up For Students, the nation's largest K-12 education choice scholarship funding organization. Tuthill is president of Step Up, and Graham is vice president of policy, innovation and empowerment for the Florida-based organization. Step Up For Students administers... Read more » The post podcastED: Step Up For Students top leaders discuss how Florida's HB 1 will transform education choice in the Sunshine State through flexibility appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Aimée Uriarte, a single parent whose two sons attend Christopher Columbus High School, an all-male Catholic school in Miami. Older son Sebastian, 17, receives a Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, while his brother, Alejandro, 15, attends on a Family Empowerment Scholarship for students with... Read more » The post podcastED: South Florida mom welcomes education savings account flexibility for two sons appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Katie Switzer, a soon-to-be-mother of five who played a key role in helping overturn a court ruling that shut down West Virginia's new Hope Scholarship program about a month before schools were set to re-open for the 2022-23 academic year. Switzer, founder of a part-time... Read more » The post podcastED: W.Va. mom takes bold stand to help save education choice for families in Mountain State appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, Tuthill interviews Demers, who started the Children's Scholarship Fund in New Hampshire, and has worked tirelessly as its executive director for the establishment of a tax credit scholarship fund in 2012 and Education Freedom Accounts, which lawmakers approved in 2021. Both are open to families whose incomes fall at or below 300%... Read more » The post podcastED: Step Up For Students President Doug Tuthill talks with New Hampshire education choice pioneer Kate Baker Demers appeared first on NextSteps: Step Up For Students.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie hosts Step Up For Students president Doug Tuthill and Heidie Nesset, Step Up's director of platform operations, for a discussion on the vital role that infrastructure plays in expanding education choice on a large scale so that it will be accessible to[Read More...] The post podcastED: The role of infrastructure in education choice success appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Nicole Bradica, a mother of five ranging in age from 14 to 2 years old. The family lives in Chuluota, Florida, a small town of 2,532 residents near Orlando. Bradica, who has been homeschooling her children for 11 years, this[Read More...] The post podcastED: Homeschool mom believes universal education savings account would benefit her family appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Emily Hayes, a Florida mother of three children who benefit from the Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities. Hayes discusses how the family has been able to use the funds for many different things, supporting her children's needs[Read More...] The post podcastED: Flexible spending through education savings accounts key to success for Florida family appeared first on reimaginED.
Editor's note: You can read more about Optima Classical Academy here. On this episode, Tuthill interviews former Collier County School Board member Donalds, who is president and CEO of the Optima Foundation, a network of charter schools serving more than 3,000 students. The organization is set to launch Optima Classical Academy[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews education entrepreneur Erika Donalds appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Bob Luddy, founder and president of CaptiveAire, a commercial ventilation system company in the Raleigh, N.C. area, and founder of several schools. The latest of these, Thales Academy, which Luddy started in 2007 in the CaptiveAire corporate office, enrolls 5,800[Read More...] The post podcastED: North Carolina entrepreneur offers affordable private education through network of classical schools in multiple states appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Sherry White, a former district middle school teacher who taught near Ocala and now homeschools her 16-year-old daughter, Eilise. Born with autism and other medical conditions, Elise needed traditional physical and occupational therapies, but each session caused tantrums and screaming.[Read More...] The post podcastED: Florida mom credits education choice scholarship with helping daughter overcome learning challenges appeared first on reimaginED.
Editor's note: To read Tuthill's analysis of DeVos' book, click here. On this episode, Tuthill interviews DeVos, encouraging her to talk about her new book, “Hostages No More: The Fight for Education Freedom and the Future of the American Child.” DeVos discusses how when reflecting on her time in Washington[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill speaks with former U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Shawn Peterson, president of Catholic Education Partners, a nonprofit organization based in the Minnesota Twin Cities area. A former staff member in the Minnesota Legislature who worked for two Minnesota governors, Peterson talks about growing up in various learning environments,[Read More...] The post podcastED: Catholic Education Partners president discusses parental choice and how education savings accounts represent the next wave appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Shawn McCormick, a Florida law enforcement officer, husband, and father of four. McCormick's children became eligible for a Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options after the passage of House Bill 3, which extended eligibility to law enforcement families regardless of[Read More...] The post podcastED: Florida law enforcement dad grateful for scholarship expansion appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Caroline Tevlin, an elementary school Spanish teacher who customizes her students' education by tapping into their individual learning styles. Tevlin transitioned to teaching online after working in a traditional school setting for six years. Four years into her experience at[Read More...] The post podcastED: Florida Virtual School teacher innovates to help students master world language instruction appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Tina Riffe, whose daughter, Vivian, 15, attends Grace Christian School in the Tampa Bay area on a Family Empowerment Scholarship for Education Options. Riffe's father served in the U.S. Navy. Her husband, Danny, a first-class petty officer, joined the Navy[Read More...] The post podcastED: Florida mom expresses gratitude for state scholarship expansion to students in military families appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Michael Bonick, an elementary teacher and guitar player at Florida Virtual School, who engages students by incorporating music in core academic subjects. A teacher for 22 years, Bonick's interest in music blossomed when his father suggested that he play the[Read More...] The post podcastED: Florida Virtual School teacher infuses core subject lessons with personalized songs appeared first on reimaginED.
Editor's note: Caleb Prewitt has participated in six triathlons and started a cooking show on YouTube. You can get Caleb's favorite recipe for chocolate chip cookies here. On this episode, reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Karen Prewitt, whose son, Caleb, 15, is benefitting from a change in Florida[Read More...] The post podcastED: Florida mom looks forward to additional benefits of education savings account appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Nick West, a Mobile, Alabama, resident who works for Siemens Digital Industries and is pursuing a doctorate at Purdue University. West, who attended private elementary and secondary schools, talks about how the Alabama Opportunity Scholarship program made it possible for[Read More...] The post podcastED: Software engineer shares how Alabama school choice scholarship helped him achieve success in education and life appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Tuthill talks with Marty Leuken, co-author of a new study on the spending habits of families that use Florida's education savings account program for students with unique abilities. Leuken's research shows that the longer families participate in the program, the greater they diversify their spending on items[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews EdChoice director on how families use education savings accounts appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Step Up For Students President Doug Tuthill and Legislative Affairs Manager Alexis Laroe discuss the changes coming to education choice programs in Florida following the 2022 legislative session in Tallahassee. The education budget passed by the legislature this year is the largest in the history of the[Read More...] The post podcastED: The impact of the 2022 Florida legislative session on public education appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Simone Arnold, whose son, Ayden, is a bouncy 8-year-old who excels at math and spelling. He attends Phyl's Academy Preparatory School, a faith-based private school in the South Florida community of Margate near Fort Lauderdale. Arnold shares about the challenges[Read More...] The post podcastED: Scholarship mom shares how Florida’s Family Empowerment Scholarship is helping her son maximize his unique abilities appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Tuthill and Bush look back at the 20-year history of the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship program and the education revolution that was launched with Bush's A+ Plan, signed into law in June 1999 with the goal of toughening standards for teachers, students and schools. The most controversial[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on the future of education choice appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Tuthill speaks with Denisha Merriweather, founder of Black Minds Matter and director of public relations and content marketing at the American Federation for Children, and Ron Matus, director of policy and public affairs at Step Up For Students, about their new report, Controlling the Narrative: Parental Choice,[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews co-authors of paper that explores Black education choice boom in Florida appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Renè Field, a mother of four who moved her family from Colorado to Florida in 2020 to find an alternative to pandemic-induced remote learning that was making her two school-aged sons “miserable.” Field discusses how Colorado's rules were too restrictive[Read More...] The post podcastED: How one family traded remote learning at Colorado's closed-down schools for Florida's education freedom appeared first on reimaginED.
Editor’s note: reimaginED is proud to reintroduce to our readers our best content of 2021. This podcast from senior writer Lisa Buie originally published on July 27. On this episode, redefinED senior writer Lisa Buie speaks with the single mother of a 9-year-old and teacher of English language learners at[Read More...] The post Best of 2021: Interview with district schoolteacher, private school mom Marie Echevarria appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Ladner and Tuthill discuss Ladner's recently published white paper for the Arizona Charter School Association on issues facing the traditional “yellow school bus” public education transportation system in Arizona and nationwide. Ladner observes that traditional ridership already was in decline, but the COVID-19 pandemic created a huge[Read More...] The post podcastED: reimaginED executive editor Matt Ladner and Step Up for Students president Doug Tuthill discuss modernizing public education transportation appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Ladner speaks with the director of national research at EdChoice about the latter's new report entitled, “The Accountability Myth.” The report takes aim at the commonly argued position that traditional public schools are a superior education option because they are held financially, democratically, and educationally accountable to[Read More...] The post podcastED: reimaginED executive editor Matt Ladner and EdChoice's Mike McShane discuss public education's accountability myths appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Megan Luten, a mother of three from Jacksonville, Florida, whose 5-year-old daughter, Ellie, attends Catholic kindergarten thanks to the Family Empowerment Scholarship Education Options scholarship. Luten, a speech therapist, discusses the search she and her husband, Jameson, a registered nurse,[Read More...] The post podcastED: Interview with a scholarship parent who became eligible under Florida's 2021 school choice expansion appeared first on reimaginED.
Editor's note: To read a comprehensive overview of Coons' efforts to change the face of education choice, researched and reported by Step Up For Students' director of policy and public affairs Ron Matus, click here. On this special episode, recorded to coincide with the publication of renowned Berkeley law professor[Read More...] The post podcastED: Progressive education choice icon Jack Coons and Step Up For Students president Doug Tuthill on opening democracy for the poor through education choice appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Tuthill, a former teacher union leader, presents his vision for how teacher unions can evolve in a world with robust education choice opportunity for families who want it. Tuthill's 45-year history with public education has convinced him that putting education spending in the hands of families provides[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill on reimagining teacher unions appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Shannon Bloodworth, a parent and education choice advocate from Archer, a small community 15 miles southwest of Gainesville, Florida. Her daughter, Ella, 11, and son, Holton, 7, receive the Family Empowerment Scholarship for students with Unique Abilities. https://www.redefinedonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Lisa_ShannonBloodworth_EDIT.mp3 Bloodworth[Read More...] The post podcastED: Scholarship mom discusses the challenges of finding the best educational fit for her children with dyslexia appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Ladner and the Heritage Foundation's Will Skillman Education Fellow discuss Butcher's new report studying spending trends of families using North Carolina's Education Savings Account. https://www.redefinedonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/ButcherLadner_EDIT.mp3 The report shows that significantly more families in North Carolina are using their ESA money on different purchases and services than[Read More...] The post podcastED: reimaginED executive editor Matthew Ladner and Heritage Foundation’s Jonathan Butcher discuss education savings accounts appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Matthew Ladner speaks with the president of the Arizona-based education nonprofit about the group's work to create an innovation fund to seed new options for families that need more choices for getting their children to school. Both Ladner and Gullickson, staunch supporters of education choice, acknowledge that[Read More...] The post podcastED: reimaginED executive editor discusses modernizing public education transportation with A for Arizona's Emily Anne Gullickson appeared first on reimaginED.
Editor’s note: Be sure to listen to the first podcast in this series here. In the second in a two-part series hosted by Kevin Roberts of the digital innovation firm Robots and Pencils, Tuthill and Bradshaw continue discussing a partnership between Step Up For Students and Jacksonville-based artificial intelligence company NLP Logix[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill and NLP Logix client delivery manager Jen Bradshaw discuss future of education savings accounts (Part 2) appeared first on reimaginED.
On this two-part episode hosted by Kevin Roberts of the digital innovation firm Robots and Pencils, Tuthill and Bradshaw discuss a partnership between Step Up For Students and Jacksonville-based artificial intelligence company NLP Logix, which aims to create a simple and customizable online platform for families who use education savings[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill and NLP Logix client delivery manager Jen Bradshaw discuss future of education savings accounts (Part 1) appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, reimaginED senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Juliette Harrell, an Orlando, Florida, mother of three children, two of whom attend private school thanks to the Family Empowerment Scholarship Economic Options program. Lacking education in financial literacy, Harrell and her husband, Allen, experienced homelessness as teenage parents. Their[Read More...] The post podcastED: Formerly homeless family finds a lifeline in education choice scholarships appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Tuthill talks to the chair of the Pennsylvania Senate Education Committee about education choice in the Keystone State and the outcome of the 2021 legislative session. Despite a divided government, Pennsylvania created new charter school authorizers and increased its Educational Improvement Tax Credit program funding by $40[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews Pennsylvania State Sen. Scott Martin appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Tuthill talks to the vice chair of the Granite State's House Education Committee about the Education Freedom Account Program, which was approved during the last legislative session. The program allows students in low- and middle-income households to receive education savings accounts that can be used for private[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews New Hampshire State Rep. Glenn Cordelli appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, Tuthill talks to the chair of the state Senate Education Committee about the Mountain State's recent landmark session for education reform. West Virginia lawmakers expanded open enrollment for district students, created alternative pathways for teacher certification, strengthened existing charter school laws, and created the Hope Scholarship Program,[Read More...] The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews West Virginia Sen. Patricia Rucker appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, redefined senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Palm Coast, Florida, parent Melissa Demain, whose daughter, Abby, receives the Family Empowerment Scholarship for students with Unique Abilities. Demain discusses how her daughter's medical condition, diagnosed when she was 3, necessitated a transfer from the private school she had[Read More...] The post podcastED: redefinED interview with homeschool mom Melissa Demain appeared first on reimaginED.
On this episode, redefinED senior writer Lisa Buie speaks with the single mother of a 9-year-old and teacher of English language learners at an Orlando district high school. Echevarria, who… The post podcastED: redefinED interview with district schoolteacher, private school mom Marie Echevarria appeared first on redefinED.
On this episode, Tuthill talks to the director of family engagement for the American Federation for Children about her new project, Black Minds Matter, a resource that connects families with… The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews education choice advocate Denisha Merriweather on importance of choice for Black community appeared first on redefinED.
On this episode, Tuthill talks to the District 39 representative from Edmond, Oklahoma, about education choice in that state and the recent legislative expansion that will allow thousands of additional… The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews Oklahoma state Rep. Ryan Martinez on growth of education choice in Sooner State appeared first on redefinED.
On this episode, Tuthill talks to the chair of Iowa's Senate Education Committee about an aggressive push during the 2021 legislative session to expand education choice options for public, private,… The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews Iowa Senator Amy Sinclair on choice expansion in Hawkeye State appeared first on redefinED.
On this episode, Tuthill talks with the chair of the House PreK-12 Appropriations Committee about HB 7045, the landmark education choice bill Fine sponsored this past legislative session. With the… The post podcastED: SUFS president Doug Tuthill interviews Florida state Rep. Randy Fine on education choice expansion in Florida appeared first on redefinED.
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