ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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My background story
What I did before joining Step Up For Students
What do I do on my day off?
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11/21/24 | Special to NextSteps
Commentary: Educational Choice for Children Act should be GOP’s top priority
By Shaka Mitchell After this month’s election, which has resulted in a surprising Republican trifecta, the first action GOP lawmakers should take is to pass and sign the Educational Choice...
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05/28/24 | Special to NextSteps
Survey of Florida Teachers Who Switched from Public to Private Schools
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05/28/24 | Special to NextSteps
Florida expands scholarship program for fully customized education
By Ryan Daily, News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — A state voucher program that began in the 2023-2024 school year is on pace to double in size — at least...
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05/14/24 | Special to NextSteps
Controlling the Narrative: Parental Choice, Black Empowerment & Lessons From Florida
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04/30/24 | Special to NextSteps
Step Up For Students appoints Gretchen Schoenhaar as new CEO
April 30, 2024 — Step Up For Students, the nation’s largest education choice scholarship funding organization, announced today that Gretchen Schoenhaar has been appointed Chief Executive Officer. Doug Tuthill, who...
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04/01/24 | Special to NextSteps
The most encouraging trend lines for Catholic schools in America
Catholic school enrollment in Florida grew more in the past year than in the previous 10 years combined, while Catholic school enrollment nationally held steady, according to the latest figures...
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03/20/24 | Special to NextSteps
Catholic school enrollment holds steady nationally, rises in Florida
By Ron Matus and Lauren May The latest national and state-by-state Catholic school enrollment numbers are out – and they amplify the contrast between what’s happening in Florida and most...
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11/02/23 | Special to NextSteps
Florida education scholarship funding bills set for special session
News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — With a special legislative session poised to start Monday, the Florida House and Senate on Thursday released proposals that could lead to more students...
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11/02/23 | Special to NextSteps
Florida education scholarship funding bills set for special session
News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE — With a special legislative session poised to start Monday, the Florida House and Senate on Thursday released proposals that could lead to more students...
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10/30/23 | Special to NextSteps
Florida lawmakers aim to boost scholarship funding to meet increased demand
By News Service of Florida TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida lawmakers are gearing up to provide additional funding to a part of the state’s school-voucher program that serves students with special...
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08/22/23 | Special to NextSteps
Special report: Why Catholic schools in Florida are growing
This paper was authored by the Step Up For Students team of Lauren May, director of advocacy and a former Catholic school teacher and principal; Patrick Gibbons, senior manager for...
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08/17/23 | Special to NextSteps
Coming Tuesday: Growth, innovation and diversity in Florida Catholic schools
On Tuesday, a new report by Step Up For Students will document the growth and increasing diversity of Florida’s Catholic schools. The report is primarily based on data from the...
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06/26/23 | Special to NextSteps
Column: What Florida’s school choice scholarship programs meant to me
Editor’s note: The following column by Hera Varmah, a beneficiary of the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship and the communication and events assistant at the American Federation for Children, originally appeared...
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06/23/23 | Special to NextSteps
Commentary: Parent wants education choice for all Texas kids
Editor’s note: This commentary, written by team members at the Institute for Justice, orginally appeared June18 in the Beaumont Enterprise. Texas parent Danielle Chavez loves public schools, just not the...
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06/22/23 | Special to NextSteps
Report: Four recommendations as states begin hard work of putting ESA programs in place
Editor’s note: This commentary by Nicole Stelle Garnett, senior fellow at The Manhattan Institute, and Michael McShane, director of national research at EdChoice and guest blogger at reimaginED, appeared...
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06/22/23 | Special to NextSteps
Commentary: Time running out for PA governor to make good on promise to expand school choice
Editor’s note: This commentary by Kevin Mooney, senior investigation journalist at the Commonwealth Foundation, Pennsylvania’s free-market think tank, originally appeared June 16 in the Daily Caller. By following through...
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