Enriching Education: National School Choice Week

As 2017 promises to bring new growth to educational opportunity around the country, tens of millions of parents, teachers, students, citizens and community leaders are planning celebrations during National School Choice Week. (For parochial students, this is also National Lutheran Schools Week and National Catholic Schools Week.)

21,392 independently-planned events will take place from January 22-28 including pep rallies, science fairs, school tours, policy forums, and rallies in more than 25 state capitals. These celebrations will be attended by tens of millions of Americans in all 50 states over just seven days.

Of the 21,392 events, 16,758 are planned by schools, 2,168 by homeschooling groups, 1,358 by chambers of commerce, and many more by individuals, along with coalitions of policy, advocacy, and education organizations. Each event reflects the community and mission of the individual event planners, focusing on themes like parent information nights, registration fairs, and workforce readiness. 

“National School Choice Week provides a unique opportunity for Americans to join together on an issue that impacts all of us: educational opportunity,” said Andrew Campanella, president of National School Choice Week. “With growth each year, it’s clear that tens of millions of Americans are excited to celebrate the great education options in their communities and stand up for increased choice and access where it doesn’t yet exist.” 

In seven years, National School Choice Week has grown to 142 times its initial size. The Week was first celebrated in 2011 with 150 events and grew to 406 events in 2012; 3,600 events in 2013; 5,500 events in 2014; 11,082 events in 2015; 16,745 events in 2016; and will feature 21,392 events in 2017. More people search on Google for “school choice” during National School Choice Week than any other time of the year. 

National School Choice Week is a nonpartisan, nonpolitical public awareness effort. For more information, visit news.schoolchoiceweek.com or www.facebook.com/schoolchoiceweek.