On behalf of our activist community, I urge you to contact your representative and ask him or her to support the Higher Education Reform and Opportunity (HERO ) Act, H.R. 4274. Introduced by Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.), the HERO Act would allow state lawmakers to tailor education programs to the unique needs of students by developing their own system for accrediting educational institutions instead of being restricted by the one-size-fits-all approach of the federal Department of Education.

As education reform has become more than a priority under Secretary of Education Betsy Devos, the conflict between supporters and opponents of school choice, designed to place more educational choice back into the hand of families, continues to escalate. While the debate itself revolves around making the best decision for the educational success of students, the opposition to school choice comes primarily from teachers unions like the NEA (National Education Association) and the very vocal AFT (American Federation of Teachers), which have each donated over $700 million to exclusively Democrat candidates, issue campaigns, and lobbying efforts.

Freedom of speech ranks chiefly among the civil rights protected by the First Amendment.The founders recognized that a free society must be allowed to grapple with conflicting ideas and viewpoints in order to flourish. Students have been taught the significance of free speech for centuries and American society has counted on educators to ensure the next generation of citizens are well equipped to handle opposing viewpoints. The great tradition of schools and universities being bastions of free speech and civil discourse has been ingrained in the American psyche and upheld by academics and administrators alike, until recently.

Around the country, Universal Pre-K has been an issue that has been getting a lot of discussion. During the 2016 election, Indiana gubernatorial candidates Democrat John Gregg and Republican Eric Holcomb promised to expand and increase funding to the state’s On My Way Pre-K pilot program, which was implemented to expand low income family access to Pre-K education. Since having become Governor, Eric Holcomb has made expanding this program a priority in his goals for the state budget and has even suggested doubling spending on the program.

The U.S. Senate has confirmed Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education. Despite opposition from teachers’ unions, DeVos was able to get the nomination with a confirmation vote from Vice President Mike Pence. There have been many arguments for and against her candidacy for the nomination, but now she is US Secretary of Education. With her nomination, there are various positives to look forward to that could be of great benefit to education reform. The most prominent one being: increasing school choice.

We are proud to award Rep. Thomas Massie’s (R-Ky.) bill to abolish the Department of Education, H.R. 899, as FreedomWorks’ Bill of the Month for March. His bill, only a sentence long in length, reads, “The Department of Education shall terminate on December 31, 2018.”

On February 9, Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI) introduced H.R. 999 to amend the internal revenue code of 1986 to expand access to Coverdell education savings accounts. This bill has bipartisan support and will help millions of Americans struggling to pay for education. The bill was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

On behalf of FreedomWorks’ activist community, I urge you to contact your representative and urge him or her to support the Academic Partnerships Lead Us to Success (A-PLUS) Act, H.R. 719, introduced by Rep. Mark Walker (R-N.C.). This bill will put education back in the hands of local and state governments.