Alliance for School Choice

The Alliance for School Choice is an organization promoting school choice programs. The Alliance for School choice supports the creation and expansion of school voucher, corporate tax credit, and other school choice programs. The organization is headquartered in Washington, DC, is designated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and receives its funding through private individual and foundation donations. [cite web|url=http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=22548|title=Hispanic Support for School Choice Is High - by Jim Waters |publisher=The Heartland Institute|accessdate=2008-01-08|last=|first=]

History

The Alliance for School Choice was launched on May 17, 2004, the fiftieth anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education, with headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona. The formation of the Alliance for School Choice represented the merger of three organizations: the American Education Reform Council, Children First America, and the American Education Reform Foundation. Clint Bolick, who was part of the legal team that argued the Zelman v. Simmons-Harris school voucher case before the U.S. Supreme Court, was appointed as the Alliance's first president in 2004. Bolick resigned his position at the Alliance in 2007 to take a new post at the Arizona-based Goldwater Institute. On January 16, 2007, the Alliance's board of directors announced the appointment of Charles R. Hokanson, Jr., a former official at the U.S. Department of Education, as the organization's new president. Hokanson became president of the organization in April 2007 and the organization subsequently moved its headquarters to Washington, DC. [cite web|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/04/05/state/n154606D79.DTL|title=U.S. education secretary promotes tutoring, transfer rights|publisher=sfgate.com|accessdate=2008-01-08|last=|first=] [cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/13/education/13voucher.html?pagewanted=print|title=For Parents Seeking a Choice, Charter Schools Prove More Popular Than Vouchers |publisher=New York Times|accessdate=2008-01-08|last=|first=] [cite web|url=http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2006-03-22-school-vouchers_x.htm|title=Voucher supporters look to new ally|publisher=USA TODAY|accessdate=2008-01-08|last=|first=]

Activities

The Alliance shares offices, staff and resources with Advocates for School Choice, which is a 501(c)(4) organization [ [http://www.advocatesforschoolchoice.org/ Advocates for School Choice] ] that promotes the benefits of school choice programs.

Alliance activities include assisting affiliate organizations in states, hosting informational events, working with parent activists and community leaders to enact and implement state programs, and publishing two magazines, the "School Choice Digest" and the "Activist." The Alliance has also engaged in litigation efforts on behalf of parents. [cite web|url=http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/58615|title=Phone campaign blasts Napolitano |publisher=East Valley Tribune|accessdate=2008-01-08|last=|first=] [cite web|url=http://www.sptimes.com/2005/06/06/State/Voucher_battle_heads_.shtml
title=State: Voucher battle heads to court|publisher=www.sptimes.com|accessdate=2008-01-08|last=|first=]

References

External links

* [http://www.allianceforschoolchoice.org/ Alliance for School Choice]
* [http://www.schoolchoicegeorgia.org/ School Choice in Georgia]