Julie Young, founding president of the Florida Virtual School (FLVS), turned a two-page concept paper for a “web school” into the first statewide online public school while battling resistance from districts and unions at every step. During her 17 years at the helm, Julie grew FLVS from a small local pilot serving 77 students in 1997 into a national leader that currently educates over 200,000 Florida students annually. In today’s episode, she reveals how she navigated opposition, won over legislators, secured performance-based funding, created FLVS district franchises, and trained educators, while ensuring students received high-quality online education. Julie also delves into the differences between the emergency “Zoom schools” of the COVID era and well-designed virtual programs.

Julie Young is the co-editor of Virtual Schools, Actual Learning: Digital Education in America and author of the upcoming book Say Yes, How Virtual Became a Reality.

Virtual Schools, Actual Learning, Digital Education in America

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Lindsay Fryer, a former senior staffer on Capitol Hill, joins the podcast to unpack the opportunities and limitations of the current push to "return education to the states."  With her pivotal role in the reauthorization that transitioned the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) from NCLB to ESSA, Lindsay offers unique insights into the federal government's influence over education, a domain traditionally managed by state and local authorities. We discuss what the administration can achieve through guidance, waivers (including Iowa’s approved waiver and Indiana’s waiver application), and other actions, and explore the roles governors, state education chiefs, and Congress play in empowering states, communities, and families.

U.S. Department of Education Approves Iowa’s Returning Education to the States Waiver

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Last week, over 26,000 schools and groups held National School Choice Week celebrations to encourage parents to explore school choice options – including open enrollment, charter schools, magnet schools, microschools, homeschooling, and private schools – and urge policymakers to expand them. Shelby Doyle, Senior Vice President of Policy and National Partnerships for the National School Choice Awareness Foundation, joins the podcast to discuss School Choice Week, recent parent polling, the different types of school choice, and tools to help parents navigate their options.

https://schoolchoiceawareness.org/national-survey-2026/

https://schoolchoiceweek.com/

https://myschoolchoice.com/

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There’s so much to celebrate during National School Choice Week as education freedom continues to expand across the country. Governors in multiple states are opting into the federal scholarship tax credit, while participation in state school choice programs continues to grow nationwide. In this episode of Freedom to Learn, Florida Commissioner of Education Anastasios “Stasi” Kamoutsas joins the podcast to discuss why Florida consistently ranks as the #1 state for education freedom and what other states can learn from its success. The conversation covers Florida school choice history, myths, and lessons learned, as well as parental rights, the wide array of K-12 policies that are improving Florida’s academic outcomes, and Commissioner Kamoutsas’ priorities for the upcoming year.

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When Melissa Batie-Smoose took a stand to protect the women she coached, she lost her job and her coaching career. In this episode we sit down with Melissa, former associate head women’s volleyball coach at San Jose State University, and Vernadette Broyles, Melissa’s attorney, for a conversation about courage, conscience, and the future of women’s sports. As the U.S. Supreme Court considers landmark cases that could redefine sex-based protections in athletics, Melissa’s story puts a human face on what’s at stake. Melissa shares what it means to speak up and take legal action when institutions–and her fellow coaches–stay silent.

We also look ahead to the legal and policy battles still to come, including why efforts like DFI’s RESPECT Title IX Act model legislation matter for restoring clarity, fairness, and safety.

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Kate Baker Demers, Executive Director of Children’s Scholarship Fund–New Hampshire, joins the podcast to share how a determined mom helped transform New Hampshire into a national leader in education freedom. Kate traces the origins of the state’s school choice ecosystem, from launching New Hampshire’s first education tax credit scholarship program to advancing the creation of Education Freedom Accounts (education savings accounts) that now serve thousands of families.

In this episode, Kate explains how grassroots leadership, persistence through political controversy, and an unwavering focus on families expanded educational opportunity, especially for low- and middle-income students. We also explore what’s next for the school choice movement, including the promise of the new federal scholarship tax credit and why it could be a game-changer for education access nationwide.

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In the first Freedom to Learn episode of 2026, Jackie Guglielmo, Vice President of Services at ACE Scholarships, explains how the federal scholarship tax credit (FSTC) will “supercharge” education freedom across the country. Jackie describes how scholarship-granting organizations (SGOs) and tax credit scholarship programs work, and shares how families' lives have been changed by access to the right educational environment. We delve into the details of the federal scholarship tax credit – what it is, how it works, the opt-in process for governors, key questions facing the Treasury Department as rulemaking begins, and how experienced organizations like ACE are preparing to scale responsibly while prioritizing the needs of low-income students.

Federal Tax Credit for Scholarships

DFER Data Projects Potential $24 Billion Boost for Students 

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In our final Freedom to Learn episode of the year, Darla Romfo, President and CEO of the Children’s Scholarship Fund, joins the podcast to trace the origins of the nation’s most influential privately-funded school choice efforts. Darla recounts how CSF’s founders, Ted Forstmann and John Walton, sparked a national movement by empowering low-income families with educational choice, shifting the policy conversation to focus on expanding opportunities for individual children. She also details the potential impact of the newly-enacted Federal Scholarship Tax Credit, describes its bipartisan support, and explains what effective implementation will require from governors, donors, and scholarship-granting organizations.

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Lindsey Burke returns to Freedom to Learn to discuss the Trump administration’s plans to “return education to the states.” Lindsey, who serves as Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and Programs at the U.S. Department of Education (ED), discusses the Department’s origin story, what it does and does not do, and the pernicious impact of top-down federal influence. She details the administration’s plans to streamline federal bureaucracy, including recently announced inter-agency agreements that shift programs and staff from ED to four federal agencies, and addresses concerns about the impact on students with disabilities.

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Neal McCluskey and James Shuls join the podcast to discuss their new book, which has a fantastic title: Fighting for the Freedom to Learn: Examining America’s Centuries-Old School Choice Movement. We talk about the true origins of educational freedom, tackle the pernicious myths around school choice and segregation, and touch on the pivotal figures and organizations that have shaped education systems and options in America. From the early days of diverse schooling options (ever heard of dame schools??) to the modern push for educational pluralism, this episode challenges conventional narratives and celebrates the fight for the freedom to learn.

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