CLT's fight for recognition shows how testing policy gets shaped in state capitals.
The episode tracks CLT's push to loosen the SAT and ACT's grip on college admissions through policy work, lobbying, and broader testing options.
School choice policy, close to the ground.
EdChoice Chats treats school choice as both a policy fight and a practical family question. Episodes move between legislative reviews, parent support, alternative testing, civics education, homeschool resources, STEM programs, and profiles of schools trying something different.
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EdChoice Chats is an education policy show centered on school choice, parental decision-making, and the expanding ecosystem around K-12 alternatives. It speaks from inside the movement. Recent episodes cover federal scholarship tax credits, state legislative wins, parent support systems, homeschool resources, civics education, robotics programs, and competition in college admissions testing. The show is not limited to one format. Some episodes sound like conference-table interviews, with Brian Ledke speaking to policy analysts, scholarship program leaders, and education providers at the International School Choice and Reform Conference in Rome. Others lean into branded series within the feed, including State of Choice, Tough Questions, and the revived Cool Schools conversations with Mike McShane. That variety gives the feed a useful range. One week may focus on Tennessee's universal eligibility and scholarship caps; another may follow a homeschool mom and engineer building daytime STEM options with drones, quadrupeds, and robotics. The policy detail can be dense. It is usually grounded by practical questions about families, teachers, school leaders, lawmakers, and students. EdChoice Chats is clearest when it connects a legislative mechanism to the people expected to use it. Guests discuss scholarship tax credits, ESA-style thinking, advocacy, curriculum retail, choice navigation, and the problem of name recognition for newer testing options. The result is a steady, institutionally minded feed for people who want education reform explained by participants rather than summarized from a distance. It favors school choice arguments, but it also spends time on implementation limits, messaging challenges, and the mechanics of getting programs over the finish line.
Made for: EdChoice Chats suits parents, educators, advocates, lawmakers, and policy watchers who follow school choice legislation and alternative education models. It is especially useful for listeners who want program mechanics and movement strategy alongside school-level examples.
What sets it apart: The show blends advocacy-side policy analysis with interviews from school leaders, scholarship administrators, homeschool providers, and testing reform voices. Its feed functions like a field report on school choice as laws, services, institutions, and family decisions take shape.
EdChoice is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to advancing educational choice as the best pathway to successful lives and a stronger society. We believe families, not bureaucrats, are best equipped to make K-12 schooling decisions for their children. Our team works at the state level to educate diverse audiences, train advocates and engage policymakers on the benefits of high-quality school choice programs. For podcast inquiries, please contact Chantal at [email protected] podcast inquiries, please contact Chantal at [email protected].
Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
CLT's fight for recognition shows how testing policy gets shaped in state capitals.
The episode tracks CLT's push to loosen the SAT and ACT's grip on college admissions through policy work, lobbying, and broader testing options.
Primer's student-agency model meets the practical demands of running a school.
Primer's promise to take kids seriously gives this EdChoice Chats conversation a useful frame: how can a school be built around student agency while still keeping academic progress at the center?
A clear, practical look at how scholarship tax credits could connect tax decisions to education options.
Federal scholarship tax credits may sound like narrow tax policy, but EdChoice Chats keeps the focus on what the money could actually support: tutoring, extracurricular activities, band instruments, and family decisions about where a donation is directed.



Oklahoma policy, framed as executive action.

Singapore markets, policy, and daily dilemmas.

Jewish ideas with cultural nerve.

School policy through a parental-rights lens.
Brian Ledke hosts John Schilling and Lauren May at the International School Choice and Reform Conference in Rome to discuss the Education Choice for Children Act.
Ed Tarnowski and Catherine review the 2025 legislative session, focusing on Tennessee's new universal school choice program with 20,000 scholarships.
Mike McShane interviews Sonia Park about the Diverse Charter School Coalition's mission to support high-quality, diverse public charter schools through research, advocacy, and outreach.
Mike McShane interviews Ryan Delk, co-founder and CEO of Primer, about their mission to build a new education system.
Mike McShane reintroduces the Cool Schools podcast series, explaining its purpose to interview leaders of innovative schools across the United States.
A discussion on how parent support and school choice options like homeschooling and microschools contribute to student success.
Brian Ledke interviews Heritage Foundation experts Madison Marino-Dowan and Jonathan Butcher about the urgency of civics education as America approaches its 250th anniversary.
John Schilling and Lauren May discuss the Education Choice for Children Act, a federal scholarship tax credit aimed at expanding school choice for families across the United States.
Jennifer Wolverton discusses her journey from engineer and homeschool mom to founding Mars, a STEM education center, at the International School Choice and Reform Conference.
Robert Enloe argues that school choice empowers teachers by giving them more agency and opportunities, contrary to the myth that it hurts them.
Ed Tarnowski interviews Michael Torres, Director of Legislative Strategy at Classic Learning, about challenging SAT, ACT, and AP testing monopolies.
Ed Tarnowski and Catherine review the 2025 legislative session, focusing on Tennessee's new universal school choice program and its implications for the choice movement.
Mike McShane and Rick Hess interview Indiana Secretary of Education Dr.