Virtual school students and families from across Texas will meet with legislators and celebrate the public virtual school optionAUSTIN, Texas – Next Wednesday, March 8, the Texas chapter of PublicSchoolOptions.org (PSO) will host a Capitol Day Rally to celebrate school choice with families and students who benefit from Texas’ public virtual schools. The rally, which will take place on the south steps of the Capitol, will be preceded by a series of legislative visits by families and students. Event attendance is expected to be about 500.Senator Don Huffines and Representative Dwayne Bohac will address rally attendees.Each year, PSO hosts capitol day rallies across the country to highlight the benefits of school choice and the opportunities it brings to families, and to inform legislators, the media and other stakeholders about choice. 2017 TEXAS CAPITOL DAY RALLYWednesday, March 812 p.m. – Rally with Legislative ChampionsTexas State Capitol – South Steps1100 Congress AvenueAustin, TexasOPEN PRESSDuring meetings with legislators, attendees will urge the elimination of three access barriers that public virtual school families and students currently face in Texas.

1. Eliminate the moratorium on virtual schools that currently exists and results in increased class sizes, longer waiting lists and fewer choices for parents.
2. Eliminate the prior public requirement that requires every student be enrolled in a Texas brick and mortar public school for one year prior to applying to attend a public virtual school. This hurts military families who are redeployed to Texas and attended a public virtual school in another state and cannot immediately enroll in one of Texas’ virtual schools. It also hurts students in substitute care, with medical, psychological or other educational needs.
3. Eliminate the K-2 prohibition that prohibits students in K-2 from enrolling in a full-time public virtual school.

PublicSchoolOptions.org believes that every child, regardless of their zip code or how much money their parents make, deserves the best start in life. We firmly believe that begins with a parent’s ability to choose the school where their child will thrive — whether that’s in a traditional brick and mortar school, public virtual school, charter school, home school, or private school. Every child learns differently, even within the same family. Giving parents options so their child can succeed is critical.STATEMENT FROM SHEA MACKIN, PUBLICSCHOOLOPTIONS.ORG TEXAS CHAPTER CHAIR:“We are excited to join with fellow Texas families to celebrate choices in education, especially public virtual schools. It has provided so many incredible opportunities for our children and we look forward to sharing our stories with legislators and asking them to support more choices for parents. Parents need to be trusted to make education decisions for their children because we know them best and we want them to succeed.”###PublicSchoolOptions.org is a national alliance of parents that supports and defends parents’ rights to access the best public school options for their children. The Coalition supports the creation of public school options, including charter schools, online schools, magnet schools, open enrollment policies and other innovative education programs. Additionally, we advocate for equal access without restrictions to these public schools for all children.