Every child deserves an education that works for them.
A child’s future should not be determined by their ZIP code or limited to the school system assigned to them.
Every child learns differently. Some thrive in a traditional public school. Others succeed in a charter school, private or parochial school, online program, homeschool environment, or with other specialized support.
Parents know their children better than any government system does. They should have the freedom to find the education that gives their child the best chance to learn, grow, and succeed.
Too often, Oregon does the opposite.
Families are assigned to schools based largely on where they live, and many have few meaningful alternatives if that school fails to meet their child’s needs. State leaders respond to poor results with more spending, more mandates, more bureaucracy, and more promises. Yet too many students still struggle to read, write, and do math at grade level.
The system protects the institutions that provide education. Cascade Policy Institute believes education policy should put the children receiving it first.
What Cascade believes
- Parents should have real choices. A family should not be trapped in a school that is failing to meet a child’s educational needs simply because of their address or income.
- Every child is different. Traditional public schools, charter schools, private and parochial schools, online learning, homeschooling, tutoring, and other options can all provide paths to success.
- Education funding should follow students. Families should have greater freedom to direct education resources toward the schools, programs, and services where their children are actually learning.
- Results matter more than systems. Education policy should be judged by whether children are learning and succeeding, not by how much money is spent or how large the system becomes.
- Choice creates accountability. Schools and education providers become more responsive when families have the power to choose something better.
What better policy looks like
A better education system gives every Oregon family meaningful options, not just families with the money to move to a different neighborhood or pay tuition on top of taxes.
It means giving parents more control, educators more freedom to innovate, and students more opportunities to find the environment where they can succeed.
For more than 35 years, Cascade Policy Institute has helped lead Oregon’s school choice movement. Cascade helped advance Oregon’s public charter school law, launched Children’s Scholarship Fund-Oregon to help lower-income families access private education, and continues to champion policies such as Education Savings Accounts that put more educational power directly into the hands of families.
The goal is not to protect one system. The goal is to help every child succeed.
