Policy Priorities
Increasing Education Opportunities
Increasing Early Literacy
Creating Greater Student Outcomes
Improving Spending on Education
For American families and students today, education provides a pathway to the realization of their aspirations and a realization of their dignity. Right now, public education achieves neither end. The key to a better education system, one that serves both America and Americans, is advancing policies that puts American families first, including choice. That’s exactly what the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) is here to achieve. AFPI will formulate educational policies that provide educational opportunity for all American families. This means putting parents and students—not bureaucracies, unions, or politicians—in charge of the education of America’s next generation. AFPI aims to restore our system of public education to its original, legitimate purpose: educating and raising the next generation of Americans, facilitating their dreams—and our prosperity.
AFPI aims to restore our system of public education to its original, legitimate purpose: educating and raising the next generation of Americans, facilitating their dreams, and our prosperity. Providing a high-quality education with opportunities that benefit every student will create greater outcomes for our next generation.
Team
Erika Donalds
Chair of the Center for Education Opportunity and Chair of the AFPI-Florida State Chapter
Laurie Todd-Smith, Ph.D.
Director, Center for Education Opportunity & Director, Center for the American Child
The Honorable Scott Turner
FORMER: Chair, Center for Education Opportunity
Julia Butch
Policy Analyst, Center for Education Opportunity and Center for 1776
Latest
Op-Ed
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April 18, 2025
College Cost Reduction Act Doesn’t Threaten the Humanities
American higher education has gotten a bad rap lately. To be fair, much of it is deserved. Far from marketplaces of ideas, universities are hostile to dissenting viewpoints. Faculty openly discriminate against their colleagues on political grounds. Universities’ reputations have taken back-to-back-to-back hits from replication, antisemitism, and plagiarism crises. Academic hoaxes have exposed entire fields of study as preposterous.
Statement
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April 14, 2025
AFPI’s Chair of the Center for Education Opportunity Erika Donalds Supports Education Savings Accounts for Texas Families
Today, the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) released the following statement from Erika Donalds, Chair of the Center for Education Opportunity supporting Senate Bill 2 in Texas establishing Education Savings Accounts (ESAs):
Issue Brief
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March 28, 2025
State Policy Actions to Support Homeschooling, Another Choice for Families
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, homeschooling has been the fastest-growing form of education in America. Families have become more aware of alternative education options as parental choice surrounding education has gained momentum.
Statement
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March 20, 2025
AFPI Applauds President Trump’s Action to Return Education Control to States
“President Trump’s bold action to return control of education to states and local communities marks a pivotal moment for American families. AFPI has long championed this needed reform that prioritizes individual liberties, parental rights, and local accountability.
Statement
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March 13, 2025
Swift Action By Secretary McMahon Empowers States and Parents
Videos
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AFPI Celebrates National School Choice Week
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AFPI Welcomes Erika Donalds as Chair of the Center for Education Opportunity and Chair of the AFPI-Florida State Chapter
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National School Choice Week 2024: The Education Freedom Revolution
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Combating Fentanyl in Schools
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