Governor Ducey has proclaimed next week Arizona School Choice Week, and on Monday January 22, more than 1,000 students, parents, teachers, administrators, and community leaders will gather on the State Capitol House lawn for a school fair and student performance to kick off the week.

The event, planned for January 22 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., will feature 75 to 100 school booths run by students. School performances will take place throughout the event while lawmakers and other officials tour all of the schools represented. More than 1,000 people are expected to attend the event at the State Capitol House Lawn.

The goal of the event is to highlight a large number of educational options from across Arizona and celebrate the opportunities Arizonan families have. The celebration is timed to coincide with National School Choice Week (January 21-27, 2018), which will feature more than 32,000 events across the country.

“Charter schools have been part of the fabric of Arizona’s school choice landscape for over 20 years. Through the hard work and dedication of our teachers, administrators and students, Arizona charter schools are outperforming nearly every state in the country,” said Eileen B. Sigmund, president and CEO of the Arizona Charter Schools Association. “Of course, school choice is no choice at all without quality options. We remain committed to ensuring the choices available to this generation of Arizona students, and the next, are good ones.”

"The power of giving parents options across all sectors and types of schools helps students succeed and takes our education system into the next generation of individualized learning,” said Liz Dreckman, president of Choose A School. “Arizona has led the way for decades on school choice and we love celebrating School Choice Week. Tens of thousands of parents and thousands of schools participate every year; it's our favorite week of the year!"

Event planners include Arizona Charter Schools Association, A for Arizona, Arizona Chamber of Commerce, Choose a School, and dozens of schools from across the state.

Held every January, National School Choice Week is an independent public awareness effort designed to shine a positive spotlight on effective education options for every child. Through more than 32,000 independently planned events across the country, National School Choice Week raises public awareness of all types of educational choices available to children. These options include traditional public schools, public charter schools, public magnet schools, online learning, private schools, and homeschooling.