There’s a lot of noise swirling around school choice right now—and too much of it is political. According to the latest federal tax bill, private school tuition may now be subsidized through tax credits granted for donations to scholarship-granting nonprofits. But here’s the catch: states have to opt in to access the funds. And many Democratic-led states—where a large percentage of the nation’s Black children reside—are expected to reject the program. Not because it’s harmful. Just because it came from “the other side.”

Let that sink in.

Black kids could miss out on generational opportunity just so politicians can win a news cycle. That’s not strategy. That’s sacrifice.

But this isn’t about loyalty to a party. It’s about possibility for our people. It’s about what school choice could look like if we designed it for us.

Proof That It Works: The Ohio Blueprint

Take Ohio’s EdChoice Scholarship Program. It provides state-funded tuition support to families whose kids are zoned to underperforming public schools. Translation: it opens private-school doors for students who never had the key.

The results? Black students who used the scholarship were 138% more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree than those who stayed in public schools. That’s not small. That’s system-shifting.

Because when a Black student earns that degree, it’s not just personal—it’s generational. That’s legacy. That’s ownership. That’s movement.

Achievement Gap Shrinks Faster in Private Schools

Critics love to ask: “But do private schools really help?” The answer—when done right—is yes.

According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, the Black–White achievement gap in private schools shrank by 27.5 percentage points between fourth and twelfth grade. In public schools? The gap barely moved.

Smaller classes. More personalized support. More academic freedom. In environments like these, our kids don’t just survive—they thrive.

Let’s Stop Acting Like School Choice Is a Betrayal

In too many corners of our community, school choice still gets treated like code for selling out. For leaving the block. For abandoning the culture.

But who told us that growth meant betrayal?

Not every Black student who attends a predominantly white private school forgets where they came from. Some come back stronger—armed with strategy, resources, and network capital they never had before.

Blackness isn’t fragile. And our culture doesn’t break just because a kid goes to school somewhere different. It expands when we move smart, then reinvest.

We’ve never been a monolith. So why should our educational path be?

Here’s What We Need to Do—As a Community

Let’s be real: school choice is only dangerous when it’s done without us. If we treat it like a tool for liberation—not division—we can rewrite the rules for our children’s future.

1. Control the capital. Create the pipeline. Expand the circle.

We already know the usual suspects: wealthy Black entrepreneurs, entertainers, philanthropists, fraternities, sororities, and churches. And yes—we need them. But we also need to think bigger.

We need:

• Tech founders and fintech execs building scholarship endowments,

• YouTube millionaires and creators turning clicks into classrooms,

• Barbershop collectives and real estate syndicates sponsoring students block by block,

• Retired athletes and coaches investing legacy wealth into community tuition,

• Black-led VC firms creating not just access—but entire educational pipelines.

All of them can become Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs)—funneling tax-advantaged dollars into private-school scholarships for students who’ve been boxed out for decades.

As billionaire philanthropist Robert F. Smith said:

“Freedom is not just the absence of oppression. It’s the presence of opportunity. We have to create the ecosystems where our children can thrive, not just survive.”

This isn’t charity. It’s strategy. And we’ve got the capital to fund our own future.

2. Build schools for us—by us. Then take it further.

Yes, we’ve got Black-led charters in places like Chicago, D.C., and Atlanta. And they matter. But many of them are still tied to outside frameworks. They can’t always control curriculum, culture, or community the way we need.

Now is the time to build independent Black-owned private schools—with:

• Our history at the center,

• Our values guiding the leadership,

• And our kids being seen, not sorted.

We don’t need Ivy League prep schools for every child. We need safe, affirming, excellence-driven spaces—designed with our children in mind from the ground up.

As educator and cultural critic Dr. Bettina Love puts it:

“We need freedom dreaming schools—spaces where Black children are not just safe but celebrated. Where joy is not extra credit—it’s required.”

Let’s stop asking for seats at someone else’s table. Let’s build the whole kitchen.

3. Elevate the Black teacher pipeline.

Black students are more likely to succeed when they’re taught by Black teachers. That’s not a guess—it’s proven.

We need to:

• Partner with programs like Black Teacher Project and HBCU ed schools,

• Offer scholarships and loan forgiveness for future Black educators,

• Mentor, promote, and retain Black teachers so they don’t burn out or tap out.

As educator and MacArthur Fellow Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings says:

“Representation isn’t just a box to check—it’s a bridge to build. When students see themselves in their teachers, they start seeing more in themselves.”

If we want better schools, we need to make teaching Black kids the career path. Not a fallback.

4. Track the data. Tell our own success stories.

We need to stop letting others define what success looks like for our kids.

That means:

• Tracking long-term data on Black student success in private and alternative settings,

• Funding documentaries, podcasts, and platforms that tell these stories,

• Highlighting first-gen scholars, community funders, and return-home leaders.

As journalist and author Ta-Nehisi Coates once said:

“We were never meant to survive. So the fact that we do must be recorded. Must be honored. Must be taught.”

Let’s show the world that our children aren’t exceptions to the rule—they’re examples of what’s possible when the rules are rewritten.

The Ripple Effect

If we do this right, class sizes in public schools shrink. Independent schools rise. SGOs expand. Teachers are empowered. And Black families get to choose the best path forward—not just the default one.

This isn’t about abandoning public schools. It’s about building systems that actually serve us.

School choice doesn’t have to be a trap.
It can be the setup.
For freedom. For ownership. For legacy.