The battle that looms ahead, especially at the state and local levels, is the long-term survivability of the nonprofit tax exemption. It's not so much the headline-making laws that are the major challenge as it is the sheer burden of regulatory implementation that hinders, rather than supports, the ability of independent schools to carry out their missions. They must be informed and tuned-in to local, state, and federal issues affecting independent schools. They need to be advocates for independent education. And, they should participate and collaborate in the public dialogue to make the broader enterprise of education what it needs to be for the benefit of all children.
American society is about pluralism and the right to choose.
Independent schools have thrived because of these and in so doing have become models of educational excellence. A number of months ago, U.S. Secretary of Education Riley rolled out a plan to reform public K-12 education in which he highlighted increased access to demanding classes, smaller and more personalized high schools, connections to caring teachers, and greater parent involvement. Ultimately, it is the quality of independent schools that will keep them going. So often, in the public debate over school reform, the characteristics of independent schools are held up as models of good pedagogy and practice. Most legislators recognize this and, when they don't, the independent schools and their associations are there to educate them.