New Study Shows School Choice Can Lead to Big Success

A new study by the Urban Institute shows that Ohio’s school choice program helps students not just in school, but in life.

Researchers at the Urban Institute looked at thousands of students who used a program called EdChoice, which is similar to Missouri’s MOScholars. They followed the students for years to see what happened after high school.

What they found is exciting.

Students who used the school choice program were:

• 60% more likely to earn a college degree
• More likely to go to a four-year college
• Even more successful if they stayed in the program for four or more years

The results were even stronger for students from low-income families and for Black students. In fact, Black students in the program were 136% more likely to graduate from college than their peers who stayed in public schools.

That’s not all. Even the students who didn’t use the program but went to public schools in areas with school choice also did better. This shows that giving families more options can help everyone, not just a few.

This is great news for Missouri.

Here in our state, the MOScholars program is helping students from low-income families and those with special needs find schools that work best for them. Just like Ohio’s program, it gives parents the power to choose — and when that happens, kids thrive.

Missouri’s program is still new, but if we continue to support it and give more families access, we could see the same powerful results. More college degrees. More dreams achieved. More success stories across every zip code.

At CEAM, we believe that every child deserves the chance to succeed, no matter where they live or how much money their family makes. This new study gives us hope — and proof — that school choice works.

Let’s keep moving forward.

You can read the entire study here.