Indiana School Choice

Teresa Meredith, et al. v. Mitch Daniels, et al
Institute for Justice  Defendeds Indiana's New Choice Scholarship Program

Institute for Justice is defending Indiana’s new Choice Scholarship Program from the lawsuit filed against it by a group of taxpayers represented by the National Education Association.  The Institute is defending the program on behalf of Indiana families who wish to participate and use the scholarships to send their children to private schools, where they are more likely to receive a quality education.  For the past twenty years, the Institute has litigated in state and federal courts across the country—including the U.S. Supreme Court—to protect school choice programs.  Significantly, the Institute successfully defended school scholarship programs that are similar to Indiana’s in Milwaukee and Cleveland.

Indiana’s Choice Scholarship Program, signed by Governor Mitch Daniels in May 2011, could grow into the nation’s largest school choice scholarship program.  The program awards low- and middle-income parents publicly funded scholarships for their children’s education that may then be used at participating private schools, including both religious and non-religious schools.  An estimated 62 percent of Indiana families will eventually be eligible to participate in the program.  If they don’t think that their children are receiving a good education in their current public school, the program will enable them to pick a private school that better suits their child’s educational needs.