Public education has become weaponized by the Left to propagandize the minds of impressionable children. Radical left teacher union bosses have had control and the outcomes have been horrible for our state. Woke ideologies aside, the majority of students in MN do not meet reading and math standards. These issues can be solved but it will not happen with a top down, one size fits all solution.

GOP Representative Tom Dippel (41B) introduced HF2895 which would serve as one of the strongest school choice options in the country. This legislation appears to be modeled after other states that allow parents to control their child’s education, most notably the strong school choice system of South Dakota.

This bill accomplishes five major items:

1. School choice is universal and not limited with certain income caps.
2. Educational empowerment accounts established.
3. The funding per-student is equal to the public school formula.
4. No strings attached - Parents gain control and can use funds for tutors, tuition, or schools not on an arbitrary list of pre-approved schools. This bill establishes no curriculum, tutor, or school mandates.
5. No overall cap of funding for the program.

Studies shows strong educational improvements coincides with empowering parents to control their child’s education. Educational freedom allows parents and their children to choose the right system for their needs. Schooling comes in all different forms: Private, Charter, Online, Home-schooling, and other individualized education plans. The government has proven to be a failure for students and this legislation appears to be the strongest liberty solution available.

Covid made it clear to all how inefficient, lazy, authoritarian, and anti-logical the current education system is in our state. Children were forced to wear masks that did not work and could not attend classes in person thanks to crony politicians and teacher union bosses. While many rank and file teachers do not feel represented by their union bosses, the indictment on the system still stands and there are more than just a few bad apples. 

In addition, the woke, sexually-charged agenda being imposed on children is causing more anxiety and confusion during their developmental years. A student’s reading, writing, and math skills should be the focus of teachers, not the child’s sexuality or imposing anti-science gender ideology onto them. The Left’s grooming agenda must be fought and cannot be avoided.

HF2895 currently has no Senate companion, likely because it is newly introduced and hasn’t yet reached the desks of potential conservative co-sponsors in the state Senate. Rep. Dippel may want to look toward Sen. Nathan Wesenberg (SD10) and Sen. Bill Lieske (SD58) who also have pro-school choice legislation of their own (SF1194).

President Trump has begun charting the course for education freedom by fighting to eliminate the bureaucratic, wasteful Dept. of Education. President Trump must have the support and effort of Republican legislators rowing in the same direction to be successful. Minnesota’s tight margins in the state legislature allows this critical issue to have a chance. Swing district Democrats will have a tough time explaining a no vote to their parent constituents.

Action 4 Liberty supports parents reclaiming their children’s education and the shrinking of our government. The state has failed students in many regards and new thinking is needed to prevent further destruction. Children are the future and we cannot sit back while Democrats impose their woke, failed agenda. Now is the time to push for this critical legislation, Patriots can find their state Rep. and Senator here to contact them and let their opinion be known.