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- Around 1,000 Utah students rallied for school choice at the Capitol.
- The event, hosted by the Utah Association of Public Charter Schools, highlighted diverse educational options.
- Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson and Utah Association of Public Charter Schools Executive Director Royce Van Tassell emphasized the importance of school choice for families.
SALT LAKE CITY — On the first day of the 2025 legislative session, around a thousand K-12 students from across Utah on Monday gathered at the Utah Capitol to rally and advocate for school choice in celebration of National School Choice Week.
The event, hosted by the Utah Association of Public Charter Schools, featured students from nearly 40 different charter schools across the state. Throughout the day, students got the chance to showcase their respective school and also get an up-close look at the legislative process.
"We want our elected officials to see and hear the voices of these kids. We want to make sure that that interaction is real and that they understand how important it is for every child to find a school that fits them," said Royce Van Tassell, executive director of the Utah Association of Public Charter Schools. "Sometimes, that's going to be a district. Sometimes, that's going to be a charter school. There are lots of choices in Utah, but it's so important for families to have the opportunity to find a school that matches their values."
Van Tassell said that 43 states in the country currently have a charter school law in place and he thinks Utah's is the best, making the state a leader in giving parents a choice for their child's education.
The Utah Fits All voucher program was established in 2023 from HB215 and provides $8,000 scholarships to qualifying families for private schools and other private education options.
While the Utah Association of Public Charter Schools was neutral on HB215, its passing certainly helped expand access to alternative schooling options for Utah families.
One bill that the association is keeping its eyes on during the 2025 legislative session is HB43, sponsored by Rep. Karen Peterson, R-Clinton, which would extend "sunset dates" on some of the funding streams for charter education.
"The problem with those funding streams, you know, in our DNA, charter schools want to be innovative. We don't want to be told, 'You can only solve this problem this way,'" Van Tassell said. "Instead of having to use this money only this way, just to meet the needs of your kids and your faculty and do what's best for our kids."
Another, Van Tassell said, is a currently unnumbered bill designed to raise parental awareness of the various school choice options that exist to them.
Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson also spoke at the event, expressing her and Gov. Spencer Cox's support for charter education in Utah.
"You will build yourselves into the future leaders that we need, that our state needs, that our country needs (and) our community needs," Henderson said. "And that starts at your lunch table."
