Parents CAN fight for school choice in Arizona

August 2005

Kaitlyn Perkins demonstrates her artistic talent for her uncle, Clay Perkins.

Parents CAN Fight for School Choice in Arizona

Above, Angel Grijalva and his sister Gemma traveled with their family for three hours to attend the event. IJ-AZ Executive Director Tim Keller takes advantage of the opportunity to have his face painted with the IJ logo.

On June 14, the Institute for Justice Arizona Chapter (IJ-AZ) invited parents to join Parents CAN (Choice Action Network), and let them know that Parents CAN work together toward more educational opportunities for their children. Our friends at the Alliance for School Choice helped make the event fun for the children by providing a balloon artist, a face painter and lots of pizza.

The first family to arrive drove for three hours from southern Arizona just to attend our party and learn more about their options. They are already sacrificing a great deal to send their three children to a private school, but may not be able to continue doing so.

Cole Perkins brought his two children and shared a story that highlights one of the difficult decisions the lack of school choice forces a parent to make: his daughter has blossomed in a private pre-school program, but now that she is ready for kindergarten and her brother for pre-school, the family cannot afford to send both to that school. Cole’s daughter will have to leave the private school.

This event was fun and a great way to begin letting the parents of Arizona know that Parents CAN make a difference in the movement to expand school choice in this state.

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