Florida Department of Education hosts the School Choice Expo

TAMPA - This month marks an important time for School Choice in our country.  In Florida, January is School Choice Month and this week National School Choice Week is recognized across the country. 

In addition, the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools last week ranked Florida second in the nation for the strength of its public school choice laws. 

The report, Measuring Up to the Model: A Ranking of State Public Charter School Laws, analyzes state charter laws and scores how well each supports charter school quality and growth.  The report can be found at http://www.publiccharters.org/charterlawrankings2011.

In honor of School Choice Month, the Florida Department of Education hosted the School Choice Expo on Jan. 22, 2011 at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa.  The Expo was a rousing success with more than 500 individuals attending to learn more about the broad array of school choice options available in the Sunshine State.

Florida’s Commissioner of Education, Dr. Eric J. Smith had this to say about the event:

 “Florida is home to a lot of great educational experiences that are taking place each and every day, but our state also contains some extraordinarily underperforming schools that have persistently not served our children and parents well. This is what makes the ability to offer quality educational options to our parents so important and why Florida continues to aggressively explore newer and better avenues of school choice. Our expo was a great first step in getting this information out to the public and helping parents understand that they can, and must play a direct role in choosing learning environments that result in a successful life outcome for their child.”

And here’s what a few of few of Florida’s prominent legislators had to say in support of School Choice Month:

“School Choice Month allows ‘access’ in education to shine,” said Sen.  Stephen Wise. “This month allows parents to become empowered and informed when it comes to those education choices affecting their kids.”

“Florida continues to focus on creating opportunities in education so that our students can compete in a global marketplace for the jobs of the future,” said Sen. Anitere Flores. “As we celebrate School Choice Month in Florida, I am proud of the progress that Florida has made in empowering parents and students.  I look forward to increasing educational opportunities for all of Florida’s children.”

Attached are photos from the School Choice Expo.  For more information about school choice in Florida, visit www.floridaschoolchoice.org.