OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) introduced a resolution to recognize the need to stand up for parents’ choices in their children’s education during National School Choice Week. The resolution recognizes the necessity of school choice as a tool to empower parents with the freedom to choose the best educational environment for their children, particularly as it relates to COVID-19 and to combat destructive ideologies like Critical Race Theory promoted by many public schools.
In addition to traditional public schools, Oklahomans have a vast network of homeschooling resources, numerous private and parochial schools, magnet schools, virtual learning opportunities, and around 60 public charter schools.
Lankford was joined by Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Mike Braun (R-IN), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Marco Rubio (R-FL), John Boozman (R-AR), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Steve Daines (R-MT), and Roger Wicker (R-MS).
“As Oklahoma parents and parents around the nation continue to stand against ‘woke’ ideology being forced on their kids, school choice is even more important for increasing options and competition for schools to do their very best for our kids,” said Lankford. “I am grateful for the work of our Oklahoma teachers and administrators, and I am thankful we live in a nation where parents have access to quality education options to best meet their kids’ unique needs, regardless of their zip code. Oklahoma families now enjoy even more education options with public school transfer, public charter, private, magnet, online, home school, and faith-based schools. Options allow parents to select the best education option for each child. We must affirm the right of parents to protect their kids by having a voice in their education and continue to innovate toward more education opportunities that help all our kids succeed.”
“School choice allows parents to make decisions that put their children in the best position to succeed,” said Cramer. “Unfortunately, parents across the country have been given the cold shoulder, even equating them to domestic terrorists. Your zip code shouldn’t define your quality of education. Our resolution recognizes and protects the parents’ freedom to choose the best educational environment for their child’s success.”
“School choice allows families in Indiana, and across the country, the option for parents to enroll their children in a school that best suits their needs and equips them with tools they need to succeed. I served on my local school board for 10 years and know firsthand that when parents have more choices and students have more opportunities available to them, our education system and country is stronger for it,” said Braun.
“With this resolution, we promote the benefits of school choice and the need to strengthen the options available to families in Mississippi and across the nation. Parents should be allowed to direct their children to schools that best suit their needs, particularly as they weigh the stresses placed on education by the pandemic, the overt or covert introduction of controversial ideologies like Critical Race Theory, and intrusive government mandates,” said Hyde-Smith.
“In spite of recent attacks on their ability to play a part in the education of their children, parents deserve a front-row seat in the discussion about what and how their kids learn as well as the opportunity to decide what option works best for their family. I’m proud to join my colleagues in recognizing the importance of school choice and reaffirming moms’ and dads’ roles in helping ensure their students get the best education possible,” Boozman said.
“As if it’s not enough for the Biden administration to inflict their far-left policies on everything from our military to Oklahoma energy producers, now they want to silence parents’ voices as it relates to their children’s education,” said Inhofe. “Every family in Oklahoma and across the nation should feel empowered to consider all options and choose the best educational fit for their child. As we recognize National School Choice Week, I am proud to join Senator Lankford in introducing this resolution that recognizes parents’ right to have an active say in their children’s education.”
“Montana parents know what’s best for their children—we must support their right to have a say in their student’s education,” Daines said. “It’s critical that we empower and support parents with the flexibility to choose how and where their child is educated, especially in a rural state like Montana.”
“Parents have a fundamental right to shape their children’s education, and school choice is an important way to exercise that right,” Wicker said. “Our children and future leaders deserve the best educational opportunities available, no matter their circumstances. At a time when public education is under siege from far-left identity politics and heavy-handed school closures, empowering parents to choose where their children go to school is all the more vital in developing the next generation of Americans.”
The following organizations support the resolution: Heritage Action, ParentalRights.org, Center for Urban Renewal and Education, American Conservative Union, Faith and Freedom Coalition, Family Policy Alliance, American Association of Christian Schools, Association of Christian Schools International, First Liberty Institute, Alliance Defending Freedom, American Center for Law and Justice, Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee, and Family Research Council.
Lankford continues to stand for parents’ rights and support school choice for Oklahomans and students around the nation. Lankford introduced a resolution supporting parents’ rights to be fully and actively involved in the education of their children after the Biden Administration has politicized and weaponized the Justice Department by threatening to use federal law enforcement resources to intimidate and silence parents who speak out to protect their children from harmful curricula like critical race theory being pushed by Biden and the far left. Lankford joined his colleagues to send a letter demanding answers from US Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on reports that he played a key role in orchestrating a letter from the National School Boards Association (NSBA) that called concerned parents “domestic terrorists.”