Gov. Ron DeSantis discussed Florida's leadership in school choice during a press conference at Florida International University (FIU) this week.
"We believe, regardless of where you're from, regardless of how much money your parents have, regardless of your ethnic heritage, regardless of whether you're male or female, that you have an ability to succeed if you're given the proper tools to have a really good education," Gov. DeSantis said.
The governor, joined by Lt. Gov Jay Collins and FIU President Jeanette Nunez, emphasized the state's assurance in leaving government bureaucracy out of Florida's public education system over the needs of parents and students.
Nunez, in the lead-up to the governor's remarks, highlighted FIU's success as one of America's top public universities. The Miami-based school has likely benefited from school choice options in part for its recognition, as the governor noted, saying, "no other urban community in America has more school choice than Miami-Dade County."
Almost 97% of FIU students come from within the state.
"We have to make sure that we're empowering parents to be able to make meaningful choices about their kids' education," DeSantis said. "We've got to put our students first, and so that's what we've done."
The governor has led Florida on school choice during his tenure, including a No. 1 ranking of all states on the initiative in the country. Nearly 1.4 million students have utilized a school choice option in Florida.
In addition, over 500,000 students are in Florida's family empowerment scholarship and tax credit scholarship programs, which give parents an amount to direct to a private school of their choice.
In 2023, DeSantis signed HB 1, which established universal school choice in the state.
Adding to its lead on school choice, the governor mentioned the state's lead with over 400,000 students in charter schools and the expansion of Success Academy, a charter school network recently approved to operate in the state.
Referencing public schools, DeSantis pointed out that the network is not controlled by the designated school district or teachers' unions. He also noted that if the charter school system, which is bigger than some U.S. states, were its own state, it would rank No. 1 in fourth-grade reading and fourth-grade math in the country.
"They're open to everybody. Parents can choose or not choose. No one in Florida is forced to go to a charter school," DeSantis said. "They have to produce results. They have to show parents that they're a place where the parents are going to want to send their kids."
FIU was recently ranked among the Top 50 schools in America.
