Texas vs. Louisiana: A Tale of Two Approaches to School Choice
Texas and Louisiana both grapple with how best to empower parents and improve education. But the contrast between the two states, especially from a parent empowering, school-choice perspective, could not be clearer.
In Texas, the school choice revolution is real and gaining steam. After years of union resistance and legislative fights, the Texas Education Freedom Accounts program drew more than 100,000 applications in its first two weeks, the largest debut of a school choice program in U.S. history. Importantly, 70% of applicants come from low- and middle-income families desperate for better options than their local public schools offer. Texans have shown that when given the power to choose, parents will take it. Lawmakers listened to families, not education unions, and passed a meaningful program that lets education dollars follow kids to private, charter, or homeschool options. This is proof that school choice is not an elite idea but a parent-driven movement.
Louisiana, by contrast, is moving at a cautious and conflicted pace. Gov. Jeff Landry has championed the LA GATOR voucher and education savings account program, urging tens of millions more in funding to expand it statewide. But state Senate leadership has trimmed funding and slowed expansion, largely responding to the myth that choice will drain resources from public schools. Teachers’ unions have shown up at the Capitol opposing the program, pushing a narrative that vouchers harm public education rather than help kids. Nearly 28,000 Louisiana families remain on a waitlist, while legislative disagreement stalls meaningful growth.
It would be instructive to remember that just last year, Texans drove out anti-school choice legislative incumbents in a resounding fashion.
From a conservative standpoint, the lesson is clear: Texas is embracing parental rights and educational freedom, even in the face of union opposition. Louisiana is bogged down in bureaucratic hesitation and union-friendly politics, leaving many families without the options they want. Texas proves that when school choice is prioritized over special-interest influence, families thrive, and public schools improve under accountability. Meanwhile, Louisiana risks leaving students behind if political resistance continues to let unions dictate education policy. Victory for school choice means trusting parents with dollars and decisions, not protecting union power or preserving the status quo.