Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 1-21-22

Editorial/Column
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School Choice Options Are Changing In Tampa And Across The Country
f you’re reading this,
chances are you’re a par- ent, or have friends or neigh- bors who are. Baby Boomer, Gen X, or Millennial— the K- 12 school scene has changed so much since we were kids. Understanding these changes can help moms and dads guide their children to greater learning, success, and happiness. So: here are the three biggest changes affect- ing education in Tampa and across the U. S. today, and what these changes mean for your family.
First, school choice op- portunities have broadened over the last generation. That means parents have more op- tions for where to send their children to school.
For example: traditional public schools have adopted more flexible enrollment policies. Charter school laws have passed in 45 states, in- cluding Florida. More fami- lies are aware they can choose public magnet pro- grams, where kids receive ed- ucation with a special focus, like STEM or the arts.
Today, Florida's state-run scholarship programs extend to students in families with modest incomes, with an In- dividualized Education Plan, or victims of violence in pub- lic schools, in addition to a
few other student groups. Plus, a growing number of Florida families are choosing homeschooling.
A second game-changer since when we were kids is that there’s now more com- munity support for making school choices. There are also more resources for parents to help them find schools and learning environments that meet their children’s needs. I’ve worked in K-12 education for more than 15 years; over that time, I’ve seen dozens of parent-focused organizations spring up to shine a spotlight on learning options in local communities. From helping parents find scholarships to private schools, to helping them figure out the process of transferring to public school outside of their zone, to offer- ing bilingual application as- sistance, grassroots organizations are cutting the stress out of school search- ing.
You can visit school- choiceweek.com/florida to find community organiza- tions in Florida. Keep in mind that parents cite word- of-mouth as a key factor in what school they choose. This means you have the power to help others in Tampa by sharing your own school ex- periences.
Third, a plethora of online learning environments have developed since our school days. These online schooling options are more compre- hensive and focused than the emergency remote learning that many families experi- enced during the pandemic.
For example, Florida has the largest state virtual school in the nation: Florida Virtual School. Families can also select Florida Connec- tions Academy, Coastal Con- nections Academy, Florida Cyber Charter Academy, and Digital Academy of Florida. Besides official online school- ing, resources like school- house.world offer free support to supplement in- person learning.
All of these changes to K- 12 education are reasons for hope. With more options, Tampa parents have more opportunities to find a free or inexpensive education per- sonalized to their unique children.
If you are considering a new or different environment for your daughter or son for the next school year, though, the time to start evaluating your options is now. Don’t wait! Begin the school search process during National School Choice Week (January 23-29, 2022), when 3,016 schools and homeschool groups in Florida will be working to- gether to raise awareness of opportunity in K-12 educa- tion. You won’t regret it, and your children will thank you.
Andrew Campanella is president of National School Choice Week and the author of The School Choice Roadmap: 7 Steps to Finding the Right School for Your Child.
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By The Numbers: How Biden Won
e are so sick and tired of hearing the BIG LIE about Donald Trump winning the 2020 election until we decided to research and tell you how
Joe Biden won the election. After 14 months of spread- ing lies about dead people voting, thousands of ballots being tossed in the garbage cans, people voting multi- ple times and every other lies you can think of, millions of Americans are still believing, still talking about, and still promoting the lie.
First of all, Trump did not win the popular vote in 2016, but lost the popular vote by 3 million voters. He won Electoral College votes because of the Trump vot- ing pattern that took place in five key states, Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
Secondly, each of these states registered from 500,000 to one million new voters between 2016 and 2020.
Thirdly, there are more registered Democrats (31%) and Independents (41%) voters than there are Repub- lican (25%) voters. Most interesting is the fact that one in four 2020 voters did not vote in 2016. That could possibly mean that voters who stayed home in 2016 de- cided they would vote in 2020.
Moreover, half of Biden’s voters were under the age of 50. Other voters who increased their votes for Biden include white non-college voters, Black voters, male voters, suburban voters, younger voters, and voters who voted in 2018, but not in 2016. Following the trend of voter increases, more independents voted for Biden. There is little doubt that Trump’s trivializing, senseless lies and mishandling of the COVID Pandemic caused voters to select Biden.
All in all, Biden’s voters were more racially and eth- nically diverse than Trump’s voters.
Biden’s second biggest popular vote margin (Obama was first in 2008) in the past 20 years, his calm de- meanor, and his billion-dollar campaign fund helped Americans to bring about a needed change in America.
The truth is the light, so for anyone who has doubt about the Biden win, let the truth light their opinion from this day forward.
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PAGE 4-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY FRIDAY, JANUARY 21, 2022