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What is school choice and why is it such a heated debate across the country?

In this episode of Catholic in America, Jason Adkins speaks with Dr. Patrick Graff, Senior Fellow at the American Federation for Children, to unpack one of the most important education issues in America today.

From Catholic social teaching to real-world data, this conversation goes beyond political talking points and examines what school choice actually is, how it works, and whether it benefits students.

Dr. Graff explains how school choice policies empower parents as primary educators, align with the principle of subsidiarity, and create measurable improvements not only for students who use them, but also for public schools themselves.

Topics include:

• What school choice is and how it works
• The Catholic foundation for parental rights in education
• Why education is never value-neutral
• Do school choice programs hurt public schools
• The real data behind academic outcomes and graduation rates
• Why competition improves education systems
• The difference between funding students and funding systems
• The new federal Education Freedom Tax Credit and what it means
• Common objections from both the left and the right
• What Catholics can do to support educational freedom

One of the most striking findings discussed: Florida’s school choice program delivered measurable public school improvements at a fraction of the cost of traditional spending increases.

This episode challenges listeners to rethink education through both a moral and practical lens.

 Resources & Links

• Patrick Graff Bio https://www.federationforchildren.org/staff/patrick-graff/
• Education Next Article School Choice or School Spending?
  https://www.educationnext.org/school-choice-or-school-spending-floridas-15-year-experiment-points-to-the-answer/
• Full Study School Choice Competition vs. New Education Spending
  https://www.federationforchildren.org/florida-school-choice-cost-effectiveness-study/
• Follow Dr. Graff on X https://x.com/parthurgraff

Jason Adkins, host of Catholic in America, engages our own time, culture, and political milieu with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to explore how to live more fully Catholic. With so much to explore, we have guests from a variety of perspectives and faith backgrounds, and conversations do not necessarily constitute endorsements. 

Catholic in America is an OSVNews.com podcast partnership. Support Catholic in America by becoming a patron of the show here.