Will this be the end of the Florida mask debate? The governor’s office and the school districts have been fighting over mask use in schools, but an interesting precedent has been set now by the Florida Department of Education. Last week, they issued a rule making students who suffer “COVID-19 harassment” eligible for a Hope Scholarship that allows them to attend another (public or private) school of their parents’ choosing, giving parents more say over their child’s school environment. A strange thing happened, parents on both sides of the issue began to cheer.

But this op-ed writer for The Wall Street Journal put it best,

By putting the power to make safety-related schooling decisions in the hands of families, Florida acknowledges that parents know best how to weigh Covid’s risks to their children. A household with an immunocompromised family member may perceive the risks differently than one with mental-health concerns.

Learn more about the Hope Scholarship in Florida here, and consider the discussion. There are other elements of the school environment that hold paramount importance in a child’s education experience. What if families had more choices?

All over the country right now, families are feeling concerned by and often feel coerced by their school situations. But families shouldn’t feel trapped. What if more families had this opportunity? Today, in Florida, the arguments have ceased, and choice for families is possible.