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Religious Liberty and Education: A Case Study of Yeshivas vs. New York

Illustration of a yeshiva from the cover of the book

When, if ever, should government override parents’ educational decisions? That is the question at the heart of an ongoing battle over Orthodox Jewish schools in New York City. It pits the freedom of parents and communities against graduates who believe themselves disserved, and the state with which those graduates want to render private schools “substantially equivalent” to public. Especially timely in the midst of Hanukkah and Advent, but the question applies to everyone: Where should the freedom of families and communities end and government authority begin? Join us on December 17th with lots of questions and comments for our panel.

School Choice Myths: Setting the Record Straight on Education Freedom

School Choice: Setting the Record Straight on Education Freedom

School choice has grown a lot since 1990—from zero kids taking public education funds to private schools to over a half million doing so—but progress has been slow. One reason: a constant drumbeat of myths, including that choice cripples public schools, undermines democracy, and leaves poor kids behind. In the new Cato book School Choice Myths: Setting the Record Straight on Education Freedom, top scholars dispel 12 of the most pernicious myths. In our online event, the contributors answered many questions submitted from around the world. 

Decentralize K–12 Education

Decentralize K-12 Education

As COVID-19 spread in March 2020, schools across the country faced a problem: how, if at all, would they deliver education if children could not physically attend? They would have to get education at home. Thankfully, about 1.7 million American kids were already doing that through homeschooling. In this Pandemics and Policy issue, Cato scholars Corey A. DeAngelis and Neal McCluskey explain how, even after essentially being outlawed in every state as recently as the 1970s, their continued existence is proof of two important points. First, that children can learn at home, and second, that there is a ready source of advice and support for the more than 50 million children trying this for the first time.

Experts

Media Name: c-deangelis-cropped.jpg
Corey A. DeAngelis
Media Name: vance-fried-crop.jpg
Vance Fried
Media Name: mccluskey.jpg
Neal McCluskey
Kerry-McDonald-cropped.jpg
Kerry McDonald
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Adam B. Schaeffer

Subtopics

  • Early Childhood
  • Federal Education Policy
  • Higher Education
  • Public Schools
  • School Choice

Featured

Blog

A Brief Assessment of DeVos’s Ed Sec Tenure

By Neal McCluskey.

Based on education policy, Betsy DeVos’s tenure as Secretary of Education overall was a good one.

Commentary

Canceling Student Debt by Presidential Decree Is Wrong on Many Levels

By Neal McCluskey. South Florida Sun Sentinel.

The large majority of student debt — 63% as of 2016— is held by people in the top half of the income distribution.

Commentary

Team Biden’s Backward Hostility to Charter Schools

By Patrick J. Wolf and Corey A. DeAngelis. New York Post.

Policymakers need to reform school‐​funding laws so that students receive their fair share of resources even when they choose a charter. It is a simple matter of justice.

Blog

New York vs. Florida

By Chris Edwards.

New York has a smaller population than Florida, yet New York has twice as much government spending. Their leaders should look at why spending is so high, and save their taxpayers money.

Pandemics and Policy

Higher Education after COVID-19

By Vance Fried and Byron Schlomach.

Being present on a college campus was once inevitably part of obtaining a college education. COVID-19 has helped demonstrate that instruction and tutoring can be provided online.

Commentary

Tennessee Should Fund Public School Students Instead of Institutions

By Corey A. DeAngelis. Tennessean.

More and more families are starting to realize they’re getting a bad deal and support for school choice is growing.

Subtopics

  • Early Childhood
  • Federal Education Policy
  • Higher Education
  • Public Schools
  • School Choice

Multimedia

Corey A. DeAngelis’ appearance on The Daily Briefing with Dana Perino discussing school choice is cited on FNC’s The Five

Featuring Corey A. DeAngelis. January 12, 2021.

Corey A. DeAngelis discusses school safety on the Education Freedom Institute podcast

Featuring Corey A. DeAngelis. January 11, 2021.

Jason Bedrick participates in the event, “School Options in Arizona — Who should fund them?,” hosted by Smile on Seniors (SOS)

Featuring Jason Bedrick. January 11, 2021.

Corey A. DeAngelis discusses school choice on WMAL’s The Larry O’Connor Show

Featuring Corey A. DeAngelis. January 11, 2021.
More Multimedia

Events

Live Online Book Forum

Religious Liberty and Education: A Case Study of Yeshivas vs. New York

December 17, 2020 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM EST
Live Online

Featuring Jason Bedrick (@JasonBedrick), Coeditor; Director of Policy, EdChoice; Adjunct Scholar, Cato Institute; Rita Koganzon, Contributor; Assistant Professor of Politics, University of Virginia; Kevin Vallier (@kvallier), Contributor; Associate Professor of Philosophy, Bowling Green State University; moderated by Neal McCluskey (@NealMcCluskey), Director, Center for Educational Freedom, Cato Institute.

Live Online Book Forum

School Choice Myths: Setting the Record Straight on Education Freedom

October 7, 2020 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM EDT
Live Online

Featuring Patrick Wolf (@P_Diddy_Wolf), Contributor, Professor, and 21st Century Chair in School Choice, Department of Education Reform, University of Arkansas; Tim Keller, Contributor and Senior Attorney, Institute for Justice; Inez Feltscher Stepman, (@InezFeltscher) Contributor and Senior Policy Analyst, Independent Women’s Forum; Ben Scafidi, Contributor, Professor of Economics, and Director of the Education Economics Center at Kennesaw State University; and Corey DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey), Co‐​editor and Director of School Choice, Reason Foundation; moderated by Neal McCluskey (@NealMcCluskey), Co‐​editor and Director, Center for Educational Freedom, Cato Institute.

Live Online Book Forum

Is Free Speech Still Alive on the American College Campus?

September 10, 2020 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM EDT
Live Online
Featuring Donald A. Downs, Author, Free Speech and Liberal Education: A Plea for Intellectual Diversity and Tolerance; Alexander Meiklejohn Professor of Political Science Emeritus; Affiliate Professor of Law and Journalism Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin–Madison; Jason Kuznicki, Editor, Cato Books and Cato Unbound, Cato Institute (@JasonKuznicki); Katie Harbath, Public Policy Director, Global Elections, Facebook (@KatieHarbath); Robby Soave, Senior Editor, Reason Magazine (@RobbySoave); and Nadine Strossen, John Marshall Harlan II Professor of Law, New York Law School, and Past President, American Civil Liberties Union; moderated by Kat Murti, Associate Director, Audience Engagement and Acquisition, Cato Institute (@KatMurti).
Live Webcast Series

40 Years of the U.S. Department of Education: Examining Its Past, Present, and Future

April 29, 2020 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM EDT April 30, 2020 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM EDT May 1, 2020 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM EDT
Live Online

On May 4, 1980, the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) opened its doors. It was a highly contentious creation—the bill establishing it barely passed the House, and President Reagan vowed to kill it—but the DOE remains. Of course, survival does not necessarily mean success. In this special three‐​episode webinar marking the DOE’s 40th birthday, we’ll examine its past, present, and future. Why was the DOE, for which there is no clear constitutional warrant, established? What has it accomplished—or maybe damaged—in its four decades? What should be done with it moving forward, including, perhaps, bringing it to an end? We will discuss all of this and more as the DOE heads toward its fifth decade.

More Events

Cato Studies

Article title in foreground of a campus library

Higher Education after COVID-19

Vance Fried and Byron Schlomach.
December 9, 2020
Article title in foreground of a chalkboard and a stack of textbooks topped with an apple

Decentralize K–12 Education

Corey A. DeAngelis and Neal McCluskey.
September 15, 2020
PA891-cover.jpg

Rightsizing Fed Ed: Principles for Reform and Practical Steps to Move in the Right Direction

Mary Clare Amselem, Lindsey Burke, Jonathan Butcher, Jamie Gass, Neal McCluskey, & Theodor Rebarber.
May 4, 2020
PA 885 Cover

Maryland’s BOOST Is Promising, but More Work Is Needed

Russell Rhine.
February 26, 2020
More Cato Studies

Of Special Note

The Beautiful Tree: A Personal Journey Into How the World’s Poorest People Are Educating Themselves

In The Beautiful Tree, James Tooley braids together personal experience, community action, and family devotion, and takes readers to the very heart of education. Tooley journeys from Africa to China, sharing insights from children, parents, teachers, and entrepreneurs who taught him that the poor are not waiting for educational handouts. They are building their own schools and learning to save themselves.

Watch a special one‐​on‐​one conversation with the author James Tooley

SPECIAL! 10 COPIES FOR $10

Cato Pocket Constitution

To encourage people everywhere to better understand and appreciate the principles of government that are set forth in America’s founding documents, the Cato Institute published this pocket‐​size edition.

DOWNLOAD FREE!

Cato Home Study Course

When was the last time you were truly energized by ideas? Cato’s self‐​paced, home study program enables you to spend time with brilliant minds wherever and whenever you have an opportunity to listen and think.

Public Schooling Battle Map

Public Schooling Battle Map

Americans are diverse – ethnically, religiously, philosophically – but all are forced to support public schools. The intention behind this is largely good: to unite people and minimize discord. However, as the examples contained in this map show, the effect is often very much the opposite. Rather than bringing diverse people together public schooling divides them, forcing them into conflict over whose values and histories will be taught, and whose basic rights will be upheld…or trampled.

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