(Amoree Brown) – When I was in middle school in North Carolina, my life began to go off track. I had always loved learning, but at my new public school, I encountered daily fights, unchecked bullying, and teachers who were too overwhelmed to help me.
I’ll never forget the day I alerted my teacher that a classmate was self-harming with scissors. Without looking up from her magazine, she said, “What do you want me to do about that?”
That moment made one thing painfully clear: I needed another option.
Through North Carolina’s Opportunity Scholarship program, I received a school choice scholarship that allowed me to transfer to a private school. There, I rediscovered my joy for education, built supportive relationships, and began to succeed again.
Today, I’m preparing for a career in occupational therapy, something I never could have imagined during those dark days in middle school.
School choice didn’t just give me a better academic experience. It gave me back my future.
Why governors matter now:
My story mirrors thousands of others nationwide. Families everywhere are looking for the kind of flexibility and opportunity that changed my life. That’s why governors’ decisions about empowering families with the federal scholarship tax credit (FSTC) are critical.
The FSTC creates an opportunity for states to expand school choice without pulling from existing education budgets.
It encourages private donations to scholarship programs by providing tax credits, unlocking new funding streams for families who want better options. Governors who say yes to the FSTC will be unleashing resources to help children, not bureaucracies, flourish.
At this moment, with the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores showing the steepest declines in reading and math in decades, doing nothing is not an option. Chronic absenteeism is rising, learning gaps are widening, and millions of students are at risk of being left behind.
Some states, including North Carolina, have already expanded choice programs or enacted options for all families. But too many children in too many states remain trapped in schools that don’t meet their needs. It’s a no-brainer to add one more opportunity.
Answering the critics:
Critics often argue that choice programs weaken public schools. That framing gets it exactly backward. Families don’t leave schools because of scholarships; they leave schools because those schools haven’t met their children’s needs.
A strong public education system should embrace accountability, responsiveness, and innovation. School choice pushes every system to do better by making clear that students and families (not school districts) are the rightful center of education policy.
It’s not about public versus private. It’s about making sure all students have educational options and opportunities.
A call to action for governors:
Governors talk often about preparing the next generation for success. The FSTC is a chance to turn those words into action. By opting in, governors can:
- Expand access to scholarships for low- and middle-income students.Provide families with real choices without touching state budgets.
- Respond to the alarming decline in academic performance revealed by NAEP scores.
- Empower parents and communities to build stronger futures.
For me, one scholarship was the bridge between discouragement and opportunity. For millions of students across the country, it could mean the same.
As governors and gubernatorial candidates weigh their education priorities, I hope they will remember what is at stake: not systems, not politics, but students.
Opting in to the FSTC is more than just smart policy. It’s an act of leadership that says every child deserves the chance to thrive, no matter ZIP code, income, or background.
Families are waiting. Governors, you have an opportunity to improve their lives for generations to come.
About Amoree Brown: After experiencing a challenging public school environment, Amoree Brown found renewed joy and academic success through North Carolina’s Opportunity Scholarship, which allowed him to attend Wayne Christian School. Now a student at East Carolina University pursuing a degree in occupational therapy, Amoree remains deeply grateful for school choice and the opportunities it created for him and his family.
