02/20/26

In this small town, a classical school is rising, and families are signing up in droves

PALATKA, Fla. — All Risa Byrd wanted to do was start a little preschool. That’s it. But then the former...

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Our Latest

02/26/26

Roger Mooney

The goal is the Oval Office, and the journey there includes the Olympics

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.– Amanda Thompson said she will be the president of the United States. Not wants to be or hopes to...

02/20/26

NextSteps Staff

Step Up For Students Renewed as Florida’s Top SFO

Step Up For Students, the nation’s largest education choice scholarship funding organization, is pleased to announce it has been renewed as an SFO for...

02/20/26

Ron Matus

In this small town, a classical school is rising, and families are signing up in droves

PALATKA, Fla. — All Risa Byrd wanted to do was start a little preschool. That’s it. But then the former...

02/13/26

Ron Matus

Catholic school enrollment continues to rise in Florida

By Lauren May and Ron Matus Catholic school enrollment in Florida is up again this year, rising 1.1% to 94,488...

02/11/26

NextSteps Staff

Update: More than 400,000 students apply for Florida education choice scholarships

Updated Feb. 10, 2026 Record breaking interest continues with more than 400,000 students who have applied for Florida’s K-12 education choice scholarships for...

02/09/26

Roger Mooney

PEP allows Lyra to fly through the air with the greatest of ease

VENICE – He is not afraid. Lyra Kerr wants to make that clear. He is not afraid to climb a ladder...

02/09/26

Ron Matus

From Minnesota to Florida, for Catholic schools and school choice

AVE MARIA, Fla. – Toby and Nicole Mickelson were thinking about moving from Minnesota even before they heard about school...

01/30/26

Lisa Buie

Floridians gather to celebrate the state’s commitment to family empowerment during National School Choice Week

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Luz Acosta-Pandolphi was happy to be among the crowd gathered in the state Capitol courtyard Thursday afternoon to celebrate National School Choice...

01/30/26

Patrick R. Gibbons

Record 53% of Florida’s K-12 students use education choice options

Florida’s K–12 education landscape continues to shift toward choice. During the 2024–25 school year, 53% of all K–12 students —...

01/28/26

Roger Mooney

Florida governor opts in to Federal Scholarship Tax Credit program, Step Up For Students announces plans to administer

VALRICO – Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Wednesday morning that Florida will opt in to the nationwide Federal Scholarship Tax Credit program established in August...

01/28/26

Roger Mooney

PEP offers young hockey player the flexibility to score goals on and off the ice

The spring trip to Sweden and Finland for a hockey tournament would be a scholastic problem for Nick Hacking if...

01/27/26

Lisa Buie

Florida mom shares son's school choice success story on morning TV show during National School Choice Week

A Tampa Bay area morning TV show kicked off National School Choice Week by highlighting a family who benefits from a state K-12 scholarship. Arielle Frett...

01/27/26

Ron Matus

Little Flower power

Editor's note: This story is part of our series marking National School Choice Week. We also recognize Catholic Schools Week,...

01/26/26

Lisa Buie

National School Choice Week and Catholic Schools Week 2026: Let the celebration begin

The time has come when we officially recognize National School Choice Week. However, we at Step Up For Students like to say that every week is National...

01/13/26

Ron Matus

Moving to Florida for a school called Hope

By Ron Matus and Julisse Levy HUDSON, Fla. – In 2022, Joel Hernandez and his wife, Norma Torres, had to...

12/22/25

Roger Mooney

A Man for Others: Jesuit High senior embodies the school's commitment to serve those in need

TAMPA, Fla. — The words on the trophy read “Future Philanthropist,” and Mrs. Finley, who taught fifth grade that year,...

12/19/25

Roger Mooney

For this family, hybrid home education includes a class at the district high school

Each school day at 2:35 p.m., Joshua Jones enters a classroom at Crescent City Junior-Senior High School and settles into...

12/18/25

Roger Mooney

The challenges of attending a private school prepared the Mathis siblings for the challenges of life

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Life, it’s often said, is what happens when you’re making other plans. Tasia Mathis planned on...

12/15/25

Ron Matus

A ‘school of the future’ sprouts in potato country

HASTINGS, Fla. – It’s a safe bet most people don’t think of potatoes when they think of Florida. But the...

12/11/25

Roger Mooney

This experience is fun, exciting, scary: What is appearing on 'Jeopardy!'?

The category is “Lifelong dreams.” These are the clues. Many find this experience fun, exciting, and a little scary. What...

1 2 3 … 449 Next »

Student & Family Stories

02/26/26

Roger Mooney

The goal is the Oval Office, and the journey there includes the Olympics

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.– Amanda Thompson said she will be the president of the United States. Not wants to be or hopes to...

1 2 3 … 2,064 Next »

02/20/26

Ron Matus

In this small town, a classical school is rising, and families are signing up in droves

PALATKA, Fla. — All Risa Byrd wanted to do was start a little preschool. That’s it. But then the former...

02/09/26

Roger Mooney

PEP allows Lyra to fly through the air with the greatest of ease

VENICE – He is not afraid. Lyra Kerr wants to make that clear. He is not afraid to climb a ladder...

1 2 3 … 1,032 Next »

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Future of Teaching

02/20/26

Ron Matus

In this small town, a classical school is rising, and families are signing up in droves

PALATKA, Fla. — All Risa Byrd wanted to do was start a little preschool. That’s it. But then the former...

1 2 3 … 4,610 Next »

11/04/25

Ron Matus

At this microschool, it’s math at the beach and swimming with the sharks

TAVERNIER, Fla. – Every year, millions of students across America learn the foundational concept of place value in math. But...

1 2 3 … 4,610 Next »

02/20/26

Ron Matus

In this small town, a classical school is rising, and families are signing up in droves

PALATKA, Fla. — All Risa Byrd wanted to do was start a little preschool. That’s it. But then the former...

11/04/25

Ron Matus

At this microschool, it’s math at the beach and swimming with the sharks

TAVERNIER, Fla. – Every year, millions of students across America learn the foundational concept of place value in math. But...

08/12/25

Special to NextSteps

School choice in Wisconsin: Positive results, less cost

By George Mitchell The parents of nearly 60,000 Wisconsin children choose to enroll them in one of the state’s private...

04/22/25

Matthew Ladner

The inevitable is always certain but not always punctual: self-driving school carpools

Back in 2017, techno-optimist Jason Bedrick made the skeptical Robert Pondiscio a bet on the adoption rate for self-driving cars...

03/26/25

Lisa Buie

Former New York charter school authorization boss brings her tough but fair reputation to Florida

When Florida lawmakers established the first statewide Charter School Review Commission in 2022. The National Association of Charter School Authorizers...

03/17/25

Ron Matus

On track to accelerate as education choice expands

Andrea Leib has long been ahead of the curve. Twenty years ago, the former public school teacher, guidance counselor, and...

03/10/25

Ron Matus

Where kids still play in the woods

FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. – Millions of students in American public schools are lucky if they get 30 minutes of recess...

02/04/25

Matthew Ladner

Nation’s Report Card documents continued academic decline

The NAEP released 2024 results last week, and the results continued to disappoint, especially for disadvantaged student groups. While scores...

01/07/25

Matthew Ladner

Growth vs. decline

The Brennan Center has released projections of congressional reapportionment following the 2030 Census. The Brennan Center projects Florida and Texas...

12/18/24

Ron Matus

This educator skipped the traditional teacher route and headed straight into entrepreneurship

DAVENPORT, Fla. – Valeria Oquendo didn’t set out to be an entrepreneur. “Ms. V,” as her students call her, had...

12/17/24

Matthew Ladner

ProPublica goes full Dale Gribble

The television classic “King of the Hill” included a character known as Dale, who despite being a conspiracy theorist is...

12/10/24

Matthew Ladner

Ivy League Plus: Destructive or overrated?

David Brooks has a piece in the Atlantic called How the Ivy League Broke America: The meritocracy isn’t working...

12/04/24

Matthew Ladner

Surpluses are just a party, and parties…

During World War II the British kept a group of stately manors for high-ranking German military prisoners. The British treated...

11/26/24

Lisa Buie

'If you don't innovate, you will stagnate': Florida charter schools urged to evolve

Education is no longer about students sitting in rows of desks from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. And school choice,...

11/13/24

Lisa Buie

Rising parent demand stretches Florida’s Personalized Education Program to its limit for 2024-25

Florida’s scholarship program for K-12 students who don’t attend school full-time has turned on the “no vacancy” sign. The Personalized...

10/15/24

Matthew Ladner

Families adapt to the dysfunctional K-12 system — if they can afford it

Education Next published a piece recently by Holly Korbey called The Tutoring Revolution, which reads in part: Recent research suggests...

06/12/24

Travis Pillow

Florida ranks No. 5 nationally for children's education

Of the 50 states, Florida held the No. 5 spot for education in a national report on child wellbeing released...

06/10/24

Lisa Buie

School field trips making a comeback as education savings accounts allow more opportunities to learn by doing

TAMPA, Florida — The 22 high schoolers at Integrity Tabernacle Christian Academy donned their school T-shirts and left at dawn...

05/29/24

Matthew Ladner

What do parents want? It’s not hard to decipher

EdChoice retained the polling firm Morning Consult to survey a nationally representative sample of more than 1,500 American parents in...

05/20/24

Matthew Ladner

Education major ROI shows the colleges of education should RIP

Preston Cooper, an economist, calculated the return on investment by college major for the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity,...

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