We Believe:
Education is the inheritance of a free people. A self‑governing nation cannot survive if its children are not taught truth, discipline, and the moral foundations that sustain liberty. For most of American history, public education was understood as a civic institution created by citizens, funded by citizens, and accountable to citizens. Today, however, federal courts, national unions, and ideological bureaucracies have transformed public schools into engines of social experimentation, political indoctrination, and demographic burden‑shifting. If America is to remain strong, we must restore education to its rightful owners — parents, local communities, and the American citizens who fund it.
Reclaiming the Purpose of American Education For generations, American schools taught reading, writing, arithmetic, history, and moral character rooted in the Christian worldview that shaped the nation’s founding. Schools understood their role as partners with parents, not replacements for them. Today, many schools have abandoned academics in favor of ideological agendas that undermine the values of families and communities. The purpose of education must be restored: to form knowledgeable, responsible, morally grounded citizens capable of sustaining a free republic.
PLANK 1: American Exceptionalism and the Nation’s Historical Identity
American education must once again teach the truth about the nation’s origins: that the United States was deliberately founded as a Western, Christian‑influenced civilization, not by accident or default, but by conscious design. The Founders drew from Scripture, English common law, classical republicanism, and the moral framework of Christendom to build a nation unlike any other in history. This heritage is not something to apologize for, erase, or reinterpret through the lens of modern ideological hostility. While it is important to acknowledge the difficulties and injustices faced by various ethnic and racial groups throughout American history, it is equally important to teach these realities accurately and in context — without promoting a narrative that America’s founding was inherently immoral or that its majority culture is something to be dismantled. A nation that teaches its children to despise its origins cannot survive.
A healthy nation requires a shared identity, shared values, and shared cultural foundations. Historically, more homogeneous nations have enjoyed greater social trust, civic stability, and community cohesion. While demographic changes in recent decades cannot be undone, they can be mitigated by strengthening — not weakening — the unifying identity of the American nation. Schools should not attempt to replace America’s historical identity with a vague ideology of “diversity” that encourages children to see themselves primarily as members of competing demographic groups. Instead, schools should cultivate identity through diverse learning experiences that allow students to understand their own heritage while appreciating the broader American story. This includes allowing communities to establish racially specific schools or mentorship academies where students can learn from role models who share their background, while still being grounded in the shared civic and moral foundations of the nation. With a reformed funding model that equalizes resources across counties, these schools can exist without the inequalities of the past.
Secondary education must also return to merit‑based standards. Admissions, scholarships, and academic advancement should be based on ability, effort, and achievement — not racial preferences or ideological quotas. Affirmative action and similar policies undermine excellence, create resentment, and weaken the integrity of academic institutions. At the same time, America must restore respect for trades, manufacturing, and skilled labor. A healthy economy does not require every student to pursue a professional or STEM degree; it requires a balanced workforce where tradespeople, craftsmen, technicians, and manufacturers are valued and supported. With sane economic policies that return manufacturing to the United States, workers can once again earn solid incomes without needing advanced degrees.
The ultimate goal of education should be to prepare young Americans for stable, meaningful lives — including the ability for a single breadwinner to support a family, own a home, and build a future. For decades, economic and social policies have pushed families toward two or even three incomes just to survive, often requiring subsidized daycare and leaving parents with little time to raise their children or participate in their communities. By aligning education with real‑world job opportunities, restoring trades and manufacturing, and strengthening local economies, we can rebuild a society where one parent can remain home with children, foster neighborhood ties, and contribute to the stability and moral health of the community. Education must serve the family, not replace it.
PLANK 2 : The NEA’s Departure from Its Christian Origins
The National Education Association began in the 19th century with explicit support for Christian moral instruction in public schools. Its founders believed that virtue, discipline, and biblical principles were essential to preserving the character of the nation. Today, the NEA has become the largest political union in the United States, promoting radical gender ideology, sexual content in schools, and divisive racial theories. Federal programs and regulatory structures indirectly empower this agenda. All federal‑sourced secondary funding streams that support NEA‑aligned activism must end so that local communities can reclaim their schools.
PLANK 3: Abolish the U.S. Department of Education
The Department of Education, created in 1980, centralized power over local schools and imposed ideological mandates that undermine parental authority. Its existence fulfills the vision articulated by Communist Party leader William Z. Foster, who argued in Toward Soviet America that centralized education was necessary to reshape the beliefs of the next generation. Today, the Department enforces policies that encourage schools to hide gender transitions from parents, force boys into girls’ sports and private spaces, and promote curricula hostile to America’s history and values. The Department of Education must be abolished, and authority returned to states and local communities.
PLANK 4: A Fair and Proportional Funding Model
According to GovFacts, 81 percent of local school funding comes from property taxes, creating vast disparities between wealthy suburbs and rural or poorer counties. Wealthy districts can raise large sums with low tax rates, while rural and inner‑city districts struggle despite high rates. This system is inequitable and outdated. We propose replacing property‑tax‑based school funding with a proportional income‑based model. Under the national 10 percent flat tax, 5 percent would go to the federal government and 5 percent to the state. The state’s portion would be distributed per county based on student population, ensuring equal per‑pupil funding regardless of ZIP code. A portion of the federal 5 percent would equalize opportunities across states, ensuring rural areas have access to modern facilities, transportation, technology, and staffing. This model ensures every American child receives equal opportunity, whether they live in a farming community or a major metropolitan area.
PLANK 5: Immigration‑Driven Strain on Public Schools
Mass immigration — legal, illegal, and refugee resettlement — imposes enormous costs on public schools. FAIR estimates that educating students with limited English proficiency costs taxpayers more than $78 billion annually. Nearly all of this cost is borne by state and local taxpayers, because the federal government pays only a small fraction of public school funding and almost none of the LEP burden. There are now more than five million LEP students in U.S. public schools. Only a fraction of teachers are certified to teach them, leaving more than 100,000 uncertified instructors filling the gap and creating a shortage of at least 76,000 additional teachers needed in the next five years. Illegal immigration alone accounts for millions of public school students, costing taxpayers tens of billions annually. These costs fall entirely on citizens because illegal immigrant households pay little in taxes and often live below the poverty line. Refugee resettlement adds further strain, as seen in cities like Buffalo, New York, where LEP enrollment has surged despite the city being one of the poorest in the nation. This is a national crisis created by federal policy but paid for by local taxpayers.
PLANK 6: Public Education Is a Right of Citizens
Tax‑funded public education exists to serve the children of American citizens. The Supreme Court’s 1982 decision in Plyler v. Doe forced states to provide free K–12 education to illegal immigrant children, creating one of the largest unfunded mandates in American history. This ruling must be overturned. States should have the authority to reserve tax‑funded education for their own citizens. If the federal government insists on mandating education for illegal immigrants, then the federal government — not local taxpayers — must pay for it.
PLANK 7: Reform Birthright Citizenship
The current interpretation of the 14th Amendment grants automatic citizenship to nearly all children born on U.S. soil, regardless of the parents’ legal status. This interpretation is not required by the text and has created incentives for illegal immigration, birth tourism, and long‑term taxpayer burdens. Birthright citizenship must be reexamined and restored to its original meaning: citizenship for those subject to the full jurisdiction and allegiance of the United States.
PLANK 8: Restore Discipline, Order, and Respect
Schools cannot function without discipline. Yet federal pressure and activist influence have removed traditional disciplinary tools, eliminated corporal punishment in many states, and created environments where teachers often feel unsafe. Districts that embraced radical curricula have seen rising violence and collapsing discipline. Communities must regain the authority to set their own disciplinary standards, including corporal punishment where they choose, so that classrooms can once again be places of order, respect, and learning.
PLANK 9: Remove Sexual Content and Gender Ideology From Schools
Sexual education has expanded far beyond basic biology. Many districts now teach sexual techniques, masturbation, same‑sex practices, and gender identity ideology. School‑based health clinics distribute birth control without parental knowledge, and some districts hide a child’s gender transition from parents. This violates parental rights and moral authority. Sexual content and gender ideology have no place in K–12 education, and schools must be prohibited from concealing any health or identity‑related information from parents.
PLANK 10: Protect Girls’ Sports and Privacy
Federal reinterpretations of Title IX have forced schools to allow biological males in girls’ sports, bathrooms, and locker rooms. This undermines the original purpose of Title IX and places girls at a competitive and physical disadvantage. Title IX must be restored to its original meaning: protecting biological females and ensuring fairness, safety, and integrity in women’s athletics.
PLANK 11: End Indoctrination and Restore Historical Accuracy
Indoctrination has replaced education in many districts. “Ethnic Studies” is the new disguise for Critical Race Theory, teaching children to view society through a lens of oppression and resentment. “Presentism” rewrites history through modern ideological filters, punishing scholars who refuse to comply. Schools must return to teaching history in its proper context, free from ideological manipulation, so that students learn truth rather than propaganda.
PLANK 12: Restore Respect for Trades and Real‑World Skills
The overemphasis on college degrees has harmed students and the economy. Colleges have become centers of ideological activism, while male enrollment collapses due to Title IX‑driven elimination of men’s sports. Trades and apprenticeships offer stable, well‑paid careers, yet students are discouraged from pursuing them. We support restoring respect for vocational education, apprenticeships, and skilled trades.
PLANK 13: Local Autonomy, Parental Rights, and Community‑Directed Schools
Parents, not bureaucrats, are the primary authority over children. Communities should have the freedom to establish charter schools, private schools, homeschooling networks, and community‑directed schools that reflect their values. This includes the right to create culturally specific schools or mentorship models where students learn from role models who share their background. This is not forced separation; it is local choice.
PLANK 14: Reevaluate the Legacy of Brown v. Board and Restore Local Control
Even Michelle Obama acknowledged that schools remain deeply segregated despite decades of federal intervention. The ruling’s implementation destabilized schools, introduced “white guilt” curricula, and created racial conflict that spills into society. Local communities must regain the authority to structure their schools in ways that best serve their children, free from federal social engineering.