The Best of Friedman Foundation Blog Posts: 2015 Edition
What did our blog readers view and enjoy most this past year? We dug into our analytics to see which Friedman Foundation posts were most loved. Enjoy reading—or maybe re-reading—2015’s top content. If your favorite post is missing from the list, share it on social media to boost its visibility!
Top 10 Most Visited Blog Posts
1. New Research on School Segregation Shows Startling Trends
This summary post for The Integration Anomaly drew more than 6,000 views in 2015! The post explores interesting trends in neighborhood and school segregation. It’s a must-read for anyone who is interested in diversity in our schools.
2. Everything You Need to Know About Nevada’s Universal ESA
It’s no surprise that Nevada’s groundbreaking universal education savings accounts (ESAs) were the talk of the town in the second half of 2015. This in-depth post on the program continues to inform curious readers interested in all the program details.
3. Breaking Down Arkansas’s School Voucher Bill
Program and policy breakdowns are always helpful for readers who want to stay on top of school choice developments. This post details Arkansas’s HB 1552, which was passed in early 2015. The voucher program is especially for children with special needs. Read the blog post to get all the details.
4. A Look at New Data from the Nation’s Largest School Choice Program
In this post, Friedman Foundation researcher Drew Catt examined Indiana’s statewide voucher program, which is currently the fastest growing school voucher program in the nation. Catt delves into newly released data on participating families, enrollment, demographics, and more to affirm or debunk the most common claims made about the program.
5. Friday Freakout: What Parents of Special Needs Kids Say to School Choice Naysayers
Katie and John McCustion address school choice opponents’ attacks from their perspective as parents of a brilliant child who struggles with dyslexia. They tell their story and explain why school choice would enable them to help their child get the education he deserves.
6. Explaining Tennessee’s ESA Bill
Tennessee joined the school choice family in 2015 with its Individualized Education Act, an ESA program for children with disabilities. This post details the history and important aspects of the bill as well as recent updates.
7. Colorado Supreme Court Rules Douglas County Vouchers Unconstitutional
One of the most disappointing developments for educational choice made waves in the blogosphere in 2015. Douglas County’s school voucher program, which had already been rendered inactive since 2011, was officially declared unconstitutional by the Colorado Supreme Court. Since the ruling, the fight has continued. Our team keeps this post updated with the latest, so be sure to bookmark this one.
8. Analyzing Indiana’s School Vouchers
This spring, the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability in Indiana released a report on the fiscal impact of Indiana’s school voucher program. This post breaks down the CTBA’s analysis, addressing concerns about student achievement, racial segregation, and reliance on test scores.
9. New Estimates of Statewide Vouchers’ Effects on Public Schools
School choice opponents often argue choice programs will have a negative impact on public schools. In this post, guest writer Anna Jacob Egalite delves into the available research in Indiana’s Choice Scholarship Program and the Louisiana Scholarship Program to see what becomes of public schools in states with broad school choice programs.
10. Friday Freakout: How to Debate School Choice with a Public School Superintendent
In this Friday Freakout, we present a Twitter conversation we had about school choice with a public school superintendent in Colorado. Check out this post for an example of how one might debate—logically and civilly—with a public figure who is well-versed in anti-school choice rhetoric. Who won? You decide.
Top 10 Most Engaged Blog Posts
1. Friday Freakout: How to Debate School Choice with a Public School Superintendent
This post is at the top of the list for most engaged posts, probably because the Twitter conversation it covers is quite long. This post takes a few minutes to read, but it’s well worth your time if you’re interested in learning how to better debate school choice with opponents.
2. New Research on School Segregation Shows Startling Trends
It’s no surprise that this popular, data-rich post is near the top of our most engaged list. Author Dr. Ben Scafidi goes into great detail about recent trends in school segregation and how school choice can further integrate schools.
3. Educational Choice for Nevada Public School Students Threatened by Lawsuit
The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada filed a lawsuit in August in an attempt to shut down the state’s new ESA program. This litigation continues to unfold, but many readers are still scouring this post for the details of the case.
4. Friday Freakout: Why do Parents Send Their Kids to Private Schools?
This freakout sprung from a CNN Parents post titled “Public vs. private school: What’s with all the judging?” One commenter made the argument that most parents choose private schools only for status. We simply couldn’t let that argument stand unchallenged. We responded with actual data showing who chooses private schools and why.
5. Will School Choice Lead to Fewer Resources for Students Who Remain in Public Schools?
District administrators often oppose school choice because they think that choice programs will cripple public schools by draining them of money. In this post, Dr. Ben Scafidi tackles that myth with a great breakdown of schools’ fixed versus variable costs and the fiscal impacts of educational choice programs.
6. We Exist: One Public School Teacher and Board Member’s Journey Advocating for School Choice
With teachers’ unions vehemently against school choice, it’s unusual to find teachers who will publicly speak out in favor of it. That’s why this public school teacher and local school board member’s guest blog post is so encouraging. It’s a must-read for those interested in an educator’s perspective on parental choice.
7. Everything You Need to Know About Nevada’s Universal ESA Bill
When Nevada enacted a nearly universal educational choice program, it catapulted the state to the national stage. As the ESA program prepares to launch and lawsuits continue to develop, curious readers reference this post to understand all the ins and outs of the original bill.
8. Explaining Tennessee’s ESA Bill
Rule development is in process for Tennessee’s new ESA program for students with certain disabilities. This blog post is a one-stop-shop for bill details, including its history, eligibility requirements, funding, and more.
9. Friday Freakout: Forbes Editor Claims School Choice Kids Will Wreck Good Schools
An esteemed editor at Forbes made a troublesome argument—that school choice students will ruin already high-performing schools because their families don’t care enough about education. Our team took to our Friday Freakout series to show why that kind of reasoning is wrongheaded.
10. Top Seven Findings from Our Minnesota School Choice, K–12 Education Survey
What are Minnesotans’ opinions on education in their state, on educational choice policies, and more? We break down the top findings from our Minnesota K–12 & School Choice Survey.
