David Hodges & Daryl James - Mar 19, 2023 (Omaha World Herald) Teachers unions talk about money when conversations turn to school choice. Omaha special education advocate Clarice Jackson talks about human rights. She understands why the Nebraska State Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, opposes the proposed Nebraska Opportunity Scholarships Act. The measure, Legislative Bill 753, would give tax credits to donors who use their own money to fund scholarships for lower-income families. School choice opponents prefer the status quo. They like having a captive audience, w ..read more

By SEN. Rob Clements, March 7, 2023: I have been a consistent supporter of school choice because I believe every child, regardless of income level or adverse situation, should have access to the educational setting that best fits them. While that principle is enough, as a fiscal conservative, I am also sensitive to financial impacts. As you will see, a scholarship tax credit program like LB753 is a wise fiscal approach to achieving educational opportunity. Opponents of LB753 claim that this bill takes money away from the public schools and reduces the state's budget. As the budget shrinks pub ..read more

By Katie Linehan March 08, 2023 This week, the Nebraska legislature is debating a school choice bill that would benefit all children, but especially those from lower-income families. This debate has been a long time coming and is a testament to the power of parents and advocates who have stood up against some of the wealthiest and most powerful interests in the state. The fight for education freedom in Nebraska has been hard fought but slow-going for more than a decade. While school choice programs have blossomed in most other parts of the country, two states have held out: Nebraska and North ..read more

“My Father’s Words” As I walked by the hotel bathroom, I saw my father throwing up in the sink. I immediately knew something was different. He looked me in the eye and told me, “Everything will be okay.” That was all I needed to hear. That was the first phrase I remember my father saying to me, surely it wouldn’t be the last. Father’s upset stomach was simply his body’s reaction to the first meal he ate in the United States. I vividly recall the experience of leaving Africa and heading to our new home in the United States. It was late 2003 in Egypt and I remember the air was filled with a num ..read more

Nebraska legislators are considering a proposal that would establish Opportunity Scholarships, a tax-credit scholarship program (TCS) for low-income students in the Cornhusker State. Tax-credit scholarship programs allow qualifying families to pay for tuition and fees at private and parochial schools, as well as at a public school located outside of the student’s school district, using scholarships provided by donors, who, in return, receive tax credits. Under the proposed program, nonprofit organizations, after receiving approval from the state, would be eligible to grant scholarships to chi ..read more