On public education, think tanks blew it. They failed America, but now is the time for something to be done about it. By Wayne Hoffman (12/03/25)

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Wayne Hoffman Quotes

Much of the problems with government-run schools can be attributed to groupings of adults — teachers unions, school board associations, and politicians. — who know there exists a systemic problem in the quality of learning but are not inclined to do anything about it.

But there’s another group that I believe deserves some amount of blame as well for failing to ring alarm bells as students became adults and couldn’t add and subtract, recite basic knowledge of science or history, or problem solve: free market think tanks.

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The very best education is already here: homeschooling, private schooling, and whatever new forms parents will invent once the state gets out of the way.

Summary (Grok ai, edited; image from article)

📌 Wayne Hoffman was president of the Idaho Freedom Foundation from December 2008 to January 2024. (per Grok)

Problems in government-run schools stem from groups including teachers unions, school board associations, politicians, and free market think tanks, which failed to address systemic learning quality issues.

Think tanks — including Idaho Freedom Foundation — avoided advocating for abolishing public schools and instead promoted reforms like charter schools, open enrollment, tax credits, union busting, better standards, and teacher merit pay.

Hoffman attributes this approach to concerns over public opinion polls favoring public schools, avoiding “fringe” labels that could alienate politicians, and demonstrating policy wins to donors.

Seventy years after Milton Friedman's school choice proposal, only 29 states have voucher, tax credit, or education savings account programs, with a fraction offering universal access, and these programs still depend on taxation and government control.

Think tanks did not fully support homeschooling, which Hoffman describes as the best education option by metrics. Unfortunately, fewer than 7% of children are homeschooled and only 11 states allow unfettered homeschooling freedom.

Hoffman cites successful reforms like ending the draft and tax revolts, using a grocery store analogy to critique the slow progress toward removing government control from education.

Think tanks should advocate ending government involvement in education entirely to allow parents freedom in pursuing suitable options.

Related:

• Selected articles by Idaho Sen. Brian Lenney, former Idaho Sen. (and senate candidate) Sen. Scott Herndon, and Wayne Hoffman on taxpayer funded public education failures:

  • Lenney: brianlenney.substack.com (search for “education”)

  • Herndon: tinyurl.com/yck2shr4

  • Hoffman: leveluphumanity.substac… (search for “education”)

• Umbrellas, Community Schools, United Way & School Board Meetings: tinyurl.com/47amnyet