What Is an ESA?

What Is an ESA?

Education Savings/Scholarship Accounts are a method of funding education with government money. Instead of only funding public schools, ESAs would provide funding to private and homeschools. Their passage is a vital means of achieving the global education goals of...
Do ESA-Enrolled Students Get Cash?

Do ESA-Enrolled Students Get Cash?

Homeschooled ESA students are not given cash, but rather access to purchase approved materials from approved providers.  Once the agency approves an application, the state awards the family a digital bank account that can only be used for eligible educational...
What Does School Choice Really Mean?

What Does School Choice Really Mean?

You keep using the words ‘school choice.’ I do not think it means what you think it means. Here in Idaho, we already possess a robust right to choose from a wide assortment of education choices for our children. ESA legislation does not provide a single...
Do ESAs Fund Students Not Systems?

Do ESAs Fund Students Not Systems?

Fund students, not systems!  Despite the clever phrase, proponents of ESA legislation are eerily silent when discussing the government regulation that is attached to ALL government money, including when it is used for private and homeschools. The accompanying slogans...
Is It Really My Tax Money?

Is It Really My Tax Money?

Tax dollars have never been designated for personal, private use. Once taxes leave my hands, they stop being MY tax money. Very, very few Idahoans pay the $8,500 in property taxes earmarked toward each public school student in Idaho. A parent’s taxes are not covering...
Are Homeschoolers Taxed Twice?

Are Homeschoolers Taxed Twice?

Nobody likes paying taxes. It may not seem fair that homeschooling parents must pay for the public education of their neighbors’ children while also paying for the home education of their own family. But this is an unfair comparison.  Homeschoolers have voluntarily...
Do ESAs Data Mine?

Do ESAs Data Mine?

Yes! As a matter of fact, they depend upon it. Every child enrolled in the public school is put into the longitudinal database connected with P-21 and Common Core. This allows the education system to collect up to 400 different data points on each child. These are...
Can Private Homeschools Opt Out?

Can Private Homeschools Opt Out?

ESA proponents suggest that homeschoolers who don’t want to take ESA money will not be forced to participate. While true on the surface, this evasive response is misleading at best. Legislators are already confused about the difference between homeschooling and public...