The Alliance for School Choice promotes publicly-funded education choice in K-12 for low-income families. ¹ Based in Washington, D.C., it has several state-based chapters. The organization promotes initiatives for parents and students to choose among public schools, or to have access to private schools, public charter schools, virtual learning, or home schooling. ²

To permit access to these educational alternatives, the alliance supports scholarships, tax credit programs, school vouchers, education savings accounts and individual tuition credits for students. ³

The Alliance for School Choice contends that school choice programs, which exist in 47 states, improve academic outcomes, save taxpayers money, and reduce racial segregation. ⁴

Support

The Walton Family Foundation, associated with the family that founded Walmart, has been among the largest supporters of the Alliance for School Choice. The foundation his highlighted bipartisan support for school choice and national studies such as one from Harvard University that found school choice programs improve academic performance for African American students. ⁵

With a $6 million donation in 2013, the Walton Family Foundation doubled the budget of the Alliance for School Choice. ⁶

Martin Luther King III joined a 2016 rally in Tallahassee, Florida sponsored by the Alliance for School Choice that called for protecting the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program, a state-funded school choice program. The rally drew 10,000 students, parents and administrators and was titled “Drop the Suit,” in response to a lawsuit by the teacher’s union, the Florida Education Association. The FEA filed a lawsuit to challenge the existence of the Florida choice program. King said that his father, Martin Luther King Jr., would have supported school choice programs as well as a strong public school system. ⁷

The New Yorker magazine labeled the Alliance for School Choice as a project of Betsy DeVos. DeVos was a charter school activist and philanthropist before she was appointed U.S. Secretary of Education in the Trump Administration. ⁸

Leadership

Tommy Schultz is the CEO of the Alliance for School Choice. ⁹ Schultz is also the CEO of the American Federation for Children, where he was previously the vice president for communications. Previously he has been a spokesman for presidential, gubernatorial, and congressional campaigns in New Hampshire, Iowa, and Tennessee. ¹⁰

William Oberndorf is the chairman of the 12-member board of directors for the Alliance for School Choice. ¹¹ Oberndorf is chairman of Oberndorf Enterprises, LLC. He is chairman of the American Federation for Children and chairman of the Board of Overseers at the University of California, San Francisco. He is a co-founder of SPO Partners & Co. He was honored by the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO) and the Philanthropy Roundtable for his promotion of education reform. ¹²

The board of directors includes former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R), and former Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT), the 2000 Democratic vice presidential nominee. ¹³

1. “Alliance for School Choice.” IdeaList. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://www.idealist.org/en/nonprofit/508ad04f76f8446bb68ee406a82e46df-alliance-for-school-choice-washington
2. “About Us.” Alliance for School Choice Growth Fund.” Accessed July 10, 2021. https://afcgrowthfund.org/about-us/mission-activities/
3. “School Choice Facts.” Alliance for School Choice Growth Fund.” Accessed July 10, 2021. https://afcgrowthfund.org/school-choice-facts/
4. “School Choice Facts.” Alliance for School Choice Growth Fund.” Accessed July 10, 2021. https://afcgrowthfund.org/school-choice-facts/
5. “Foundation Invests to Double the Number of Students Enrolled in Private School with Public Scholarships by 2017.” Walton Family Foundation. December 17, 2013. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://www.waltonfamilyfoundation.org/about-us/newsroom/foundation-invests-to-double-the-number-of-students-enrolled-in-private-school-with-public-scholarships-by-2017
6. Layton, Lyndsey. “Walton foundation pumps cash into vouchers.” Washington Post. December 17, 2013. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/walton-foundation-pumps-cash-into-vouchers/2013/12/17/3578483c-6740-11e3-8b5b-a77187b716a3_story.html
7. Rohrer, Gray. “Thousands rally for vouchers, school choice at Capitol.” Orlando Sentinel. January 19, 2016. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/politics/os-thousands-rally-school-choice-capitol-story.html
8. Parks, Casey. “The Rise of Black Homeschooling.” New Yorker. June 14, 2021. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/06/21/the-rise-of-black-homeschooling
9. “Leadership.” Alliance for School Choice Growth Fund. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://afcgrowthfund.org/about-us/leadership/
10. “Tommy Schultz.” LinkedIn. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommy-schultz/
11. “Leadership.” Alliance for School Choice Growth Fund. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://afcgrowthfund.org/about-us/leadership/
12. “William Oberndorf.” American Federation for Children. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://www.federationforchildren.org/staff/william-e-oberndorf/
13. “Leadership.” Alliance for School Choice Growth Fund. Accessed July 10, 2021. https://afcgrowthfund.org/about-us/leadership/