Ft Worth Times

Irving City Councilman Mark Cronenwett is advocating for school choice in an effort to bolster the future growth and prosperity of the community.

Cronenwett believes that providing alternatives to traditional Independent School Districts (ISDs), such as charter schools and private institutions, is essential for retaining families and attracting new ones to Irving.

"Being on the city council, in the interest of the city at heart, what I've seen is school choice makes a big difference for the future growth of our community,”  Cronenwett told the Fort Worth Times.

“People are looking for other options besides just ISDs. And if the only option for some families is ISDs (Independent School Districts), then they'll choose to move somewhere else. That will cause their community to degrade. Having other options, whether it's charter schools or also private schools, gives families other options.”

He also pointed out the success of high-performing charter schools in Irving, such as North Hills and Great Hearts Academy, which have attracted families and contributed positively to the community.

These schools have offered rigorous curricula and smaller class sizes, allowing parents to have a more significant voice in their children's education.

He said mere size of ISDs make them mre difficult for students and parents to navigate appropriately.

“Some of the ISDs are enormous and charter schools and private schools are smaller and parents have more of a voice in speaking to the administration and to their teachers,” Cronenwett said.

Cronenwett shared a personal story about his own children attending Great Hearts Academy, where he notes received a classical education that prepared them well for college.

"Our kids have done very well in that environment, being able to have their focus on classical texts, reading, writing, philosophy, and history. It's served them very well," he stated.

His son recently graduated from Great Hearts Academy and is thriving in college at Benedictine College in Kansas.

“We really appreciated having that option for him where he was able to go to a charter school, get a very high quality education and then be prepared for college,” Cronenwett said.  “And we see the families are looking for that. And another thing that families are looking for that I've seen is just size. Some of the ISDs are enormous and charter schools and private schools are smaller and parents have more of a voice in speaking to the administration and to their teachers.”

Regarding the Irving ISD, Cronenwett acknowledged the presence of fantastic programs, including a talented and gifted program, but he highlighted the limited availability of such programs for students.

This scarcity, he argued, makes it crucial to offer alternatives that can cater to a broader range of students and their educational needs.

Cronenwett also addressed the resistance from some traditional ISDs to school choice, noting a sense of entitlement to exclusive control over educational offerings.

He firmly disagreed with this perspective, emphasizing that school choice is about providing options to families regardless of their financial positions. He praised charter schools for their role in offering educational choices to families, particularly those with lower economic means.

“Unless you want to just have private schools and people just use their own financial resources to pay for that,” Cronenwett said.

"But if you're talking about just in the public realm, there's a sense of entitlement that they should have 100% control over what is offered and I disagree with that. I think that the whole point of school choice is that also are all families of all different financial positions should be able to have other options than just the ISD. And charter schools have been fantastic for that, especially in North Texas, giving giving options for people at the lower end of the economic spectrum, a chance for a different education than just being forced to take what the ISD offers.”

Cronenwett’s comments come as the Texas State Senate recently passed of Senate Bill 8, which establishes an Education Savings Account program providing parents with $8,000 annually to choose the best school for their children's needs.

The American Federation for Children-Texas (AFC-TX) applauded the move potentially benefiting approximately 85% of Texas students.

AFC-TX noted the bill is a significant step towards offering educational choice to Texas students, while they also acknowledge the ongoing progress in advocating for school choice legislation in the state, despite some setbacks, including a recent amendment restricting state funds for educational choice. 

However, that bill needs to pass the State House.

The proposal to fund private school tuition previously failed to advance in the state's House of Representatives in the regular session.

The bill has strong support from Governor Greg Abbott and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick.

However, earlier this year it faced significant opposition in the House where legislators chose not to take it up on concerns about diverting funds from public schools.

That failure led to the current special session where SB 8 passed the Senate.

Abbott called he special session special session just to address school choice initiatives, emphasizing that parents should have the authority to determine their child's educational needs.

In addition to the education savings accounts, Abbott has vowed to eliminate the STAAR test and increase funding for rural schools, while encouraging citizen engagement and support for school choice.