American education is entering a period of change and Oklahoma is not waiting on the sidelines. During a recentback-to-schooleventat the White House, President Donald Trump outlined an education agenda centered on parental choice, academic achievement, less federal control and more authority for states and families.
Near the end of his remarks, Trump described the broader changes taking place across the country in sweeping terms.
“It’s a revolution, a positive revolution,” Trump said.
He then brought his remarks back to education.
“So, in everything we do, we’re empowering our nation’s parents. We’re restoring high standards and the pursuit of excellence.”
In Oklahoma, parts of that education shift are already taking shape. The state has expanded its Parental Choice Tax Credit, opted into the new federal school-choice tax incentive and created a statewide School Choice Hub to help families explore different education options. For parents, students, teachers and taxpayers, the changes raise important questions about where education dollars will go, what choices families will have and what increased state control could mean for Oklahoma schools.
During his White House speech, Trump repeatedly returned to the role of parents.
“We’reputtingtheparents back in charge,” he said. “They’re the ones that love our children. They’re the ones that should be in charge.”
The administration’s idea of parental choice reaches beyond allowing a family to select a different school. It includes giving parents more control over where their children are educated and providing financial tools that may make some alternatives more affordable. Trump said his administration wants parents to have the power to send their children to highquality schools that share their values.
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon followed with a similar message.
“Children belong to their parents, not the federal government,” she said.
Trump and McMahon also tied their call for change to concerns about student achievement. McMahon discussed results from the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress, commonly called the Nation’s ReportCard,andsaidTrump contacted her after the scores werereleasedbecausehewas concerned about the results. “
This is why President Trump demanded a hard reset to our education system,” McMahon said.
That reset involves more than school choice. The administration is pursuing changes that include returning more education authority to states, supporting literacy instruction, expanding charter schools and increasing emphasis on workforce training. Whether those changes improve student achievement will take time to determine but the direction of federal education policy has clearly changed.
One of the largest changes discussed at the White House event is the Education Freedom Tax Credit created through the One Big Beautiful Bill. Trump described it as the largest expansion of school choice in the country.
The federal program uses the tax system to encourage individuals to contribute to qualifyingscholarship-granting organizations. Those organizations can then provide scholarships for qualifying K-12 education expenses. This is different from the federal government simply sending parents a check for private-school tuition, and states have a role in participation.
Oklahoma has chosen to participate.
That decision connects the new federal program with an education-choice movement already underway in Oklahoma. In2023,statelawmakers created the Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit, which provides refundable state income tax credits for eligible private-school expenses. Private-school credits can range from $5,000 to $7,500 per student, depending on household income and qualifying expenses.
According to Gov. Kevin Stitt’s office, nearly 40,000 Oklahoma students have been served through the program. State lawmakers expanded it again this year when Stitt signed House Bill 3705, increasing the statewide program cap to $275 million for the 2026-27 school year.
The Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit and the new federal Education Freedom Tax Credit are not the same program. Oklahoma’s program provides a state tax credit for qualifying education expenses, while the federal program encourages contributions to scholarship- granting organizations. Oklahoma enacted House Bill 3704 to participate in thenewfederalprogram.The differences between the two programs, who qualifies and how each one works will be examined more closely later in this series.
Homeschool families are also part of Oklahoma’s expanding education choices. The state’s existing Parental Choice Tax Credit provides a separate credit of up to $1,000 per eligible student for qualified homeschool expenses, including certain curriculum, instructional materials, tutoring, and testing costs.
Trumpalsodiscussedhomeschooling while talking about expandedusesof529education savings accounts. A homeschooling family invited to speak during the White House event described educating three children at home and explained how additional resources could help a household in which one parent works while the other teaches the children.
As choices increase, however, families have to know what those choices are. Oklahoma parents may encounter traditional public schools, open transfers between public school districts, charter schools, virtual education, private and religious schools, homeschooling, and workbased learning opportunities. Each comes with different requirements, and not every option is available to every family.
Stitt ordered the creation of an Oklahoma School Choice Hub earlier this year to help address that issue. The online resource was launched this spring and is intended to help parents explore education choices and learn about programs that may be available to their children. The state’s effort includesinformationabout private and charter schools, public-school transfers, the Parental Choice Tax Credit, and work-based learning.
Education choice, therefore, does not always mean leaving public education. For one family, it could mean homeschooling or private school. For another, it could mean transferring to a different public school. For an older student, it could involve career training or work-based learning that provides another route toward employment after graduation.
School choice is only one piece of the administration’s education agenda. Trump has also called for reducing the federal government’s role in education and returning greater authority to individual states.
McMahon provided one of the clearest descriptions of that effort during her White House remarks.
“Key decisions that once sat with bureaucrats here in Washington D.C. are moving to where they belong, to the hands of educators, parents, and local leaders who know these children best,” she said.
Greater state authority could give Oklahoma more freedom to develop policies for itsownstudentsandcommunities, but greater authority also brings greater responsibility. If more decisions move away from Washington, Oklahoma leaders will have a larger role in determining how education dollars are used and whether state policies produce results.
For rural Oklahoma, those decisions could be particularly important. Most Oklahoma children still attend public schools and in small communities those schools often serve as more than places of classroom instruction. They employ local residents, provide special education services, offer athletics and activities and often serve as gathering places for the community.
Expanding school choice also raises questions about fundingandaccess.Supporters argue that education resources should follow students and that giving parents alternatives can encourage schools to improve. Critics question whether expanding financial support for alternatives could affect resources available to public schools or create unequal access to educational opportunities.
Rural families face another issue that can easily be overlooked in statewide and national discussions: a choice only works when the choice actually exists. Families near Oklahoma City or Tulsa may have several private, charter or specialized schools within driving distance. Families in rural communities may have far fewer alternatives. As Oklahoma expands education choice, geography may become almost as important as eligibility.
Workforce education is another part of the changing picture. McMahon identified workforce training as one of the administration’s priorities, an area in which Oklahoma already has an established career and technology education system. Apprenticeships, industry certifications, career training, and work-based learning can provide students with alternatives to the traditional four-year college route.
That broadens the meaning of education choice. The question forparentsmaynotsimply be, “Which school should my child attend?” It may also become, “What kind of education will best prepare my child for the future?”
The changes taking place in education are too large to explain in one article, and they should not be reduced to whether someone supports or opposes Trump, Stitt, public schools, private schools, or homeschooling. Oklahoma families need practical information about what these programs are, who qualifies, where the money comes from and what the changes could mean for their children and their local schools.
Those questions will be examined over the coming weeks in Schools, Choices, and Your Child. The series will look at the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit, Oklahoma’s Parental Choice Tax Credit, public and private education, homeschooling, education savings, workforce opportunities, fundingandwhatgreaterstate control could mean for Oklahoma schools.
Some readers will support the changes. Others will have concerns. Many parents may simply want to understand whether any of these opportunities could help their children.
Trump has described the broader changes taking place as “a revolution, a positive revolution.” Oklahoma is not simply watching that change from a distance. The state is expanding education choices of its own while connecting some of those efforts with new federal opportunities.
Whether that becomes the positive revolution Trump envisions will ultimately depend on something more important thanaspeech:Whatopportunities doesitcreateforOklahoma children, and does it help them succeed?