Austin News

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, alongside Senators Tim Scott from South Carolina and Bill Cassidy from Louisiana, has introduced a resolution to recognize January 26 through February 1 as National School Choice Week. The resolution aims to highlight the importance of school choice in education across the United States.

"School choice is the civil rights issue of the 21st century," stated Senator Cruz upon introducing the resolution. "Every student in America deserves the freedom to choose the best education. I am proud to join my colleagues in designating this week as National School Choice Week. This resolution sends a clear message to parents across the country that their children’s future matters. I will remain a staunch advocate in the Senate until every child has access to the quality education they deserve."

The resolution received support from several other senators, including James Lankford of Oklahoma, John Cornyn of Texas, Todd Young of Indiana, and Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming.

In addition, members of the House of Representatives have also shown their support for this initiative. Among them are Randy Weber from Texas, Aaron Bean from Florida, Dan Meuser from Pennsylvania, Juan Ciscomani from Arizona, Vern Buchanan from Florida, Dale Strong from Alabama, Darrell Issa from California, Riley Moore from West Virginia, Kat Cammack from Florida, Jack Bergman from Michigan, Nancy Mace from South Carolina, Julia Letlow from Louisiana, Mariannette Miller-Meeks from Iowa, Rich McCormick from Georgia, Scott Fitzgerald from Wisconsin, Mike Kelly from Pennsylvania, Joe Wilson from South Carolina, Tim Moore from North Carolina, Eric Burlison from Missouri, Neal Dunn from Florida, Tom Barrett from Michigan, Mark Green from Tennessee Scott Franklin From Florida Dan Newhouse From Washington Buddy Carter From Georgia And John James From Michigan.

Senator Cruz has been an advocate for school choice and related educational reforms. His efforts include authoring and passing into law significant federal school choice legislation through his Student Opportunity Amendment as part of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This amendment expanded 529 College Savings Plans to cover K-12 tuition for public and private schools.

Cruz also championed the Education Freedom Scholarships and Opportunity Act aimed at creating tax credits for donations to scholarship organizations supporting both post-secondary workforce education and K-12 schooling.

Further initiatives by Senator Cruz include defending parental rights in education by introducing measures such as the END CRT Act and advocating against federal interference with local school board meetings. He also led efforts towards reopening schools with legislation like the Catch Up Our Kids Act designed to address learning loss during K-12 schooling.