New federal school choice tax credit is gift to American families

The holidays invite us to reflect on what truly matters: our freedom, family, personal faith, and a hope that each new year will bring something better than the last.

This season, our nation has received a rare and consequential gift: a new federal school choice program that provides dollar-for-dollar tax credits of up to $1,700 for individuals who donate to scholarship granting organizations.

This program, which begins in 2027, will give more families genuine power to choose the schools that best serve their children.

At a time when the country is searching for common ground, this policy stands out as a unifying commitment to America’s most fundamental promise, that every child deserves access to a quality education.

As we set our sights on 2026 and its full implementation in 2027, the possibilities before us are extraordinary, but not assured. Parents whose governors choose not to opt their states into the program will not be eligible for scholarships. Parents whose governors do opt in will reap the rewards school choice provides.

At ACE Scholarships, we have spent 25 years demonstrating that school choice is not a hypothesis, nor a partisan slogan. It is a proven engine of upward mobility.

Thousands of students we have supported have graduated at higher rates, achieved stronger academic outcomes, and stepped into careers and communities with confidence and purpose.

The federal tax credit represents an opportunity to bring these results to scale. Based on the nation’s 1.5 million open private-school seats and the millions more that can be created as demand grows, we believe this law has the potential to impact hundreds of thousands of children in its early years, and ultimately millions. 

Seats that sit empty today will be filled. Schools with strong demand will expand. And entirely new, innovative educational models will emerge. A true response to families, rather than systems. 

This moment is made more urgent by the reality we face. The United States spends more per pupil than nearly any country in the world, yet too many children are falling behind academically and struggling emotionally. The problem is not a lack of investment; it is a lack of empowerment. Families need options. Students need environments that fit. Communities need the vitality that comes when children flourish.

The federal school tax credit offers a path forward grounded not in theory but in experience. After 25 years working with lower-income families across multiple states, we know that when parents are trusted with decisions about their children’s education, lives change. 

The future is bright, but governors face a clear choice.

This policy is a gift, and like all meaningful gifts, it carries a responsibility. Philanthropists, schools, community leaders, and taxpayers now have a chance to participate in something generational. If governors seize this moment and take advantage of this educational funding, we can expand opportunity at a scale we have never before seen in American education.

If we take full advantage of it, we will mark the beginning of a national renewal in education, one child at a time.