Join host Priscilla Rahn as she explores the profound changes and exciting opportunities in the American education landscape on the eve of its 250th anniversary. Featuring an insightful discussion with Governor Polis, this episode delves into the innovative Excalibur Classical Academy and the groundbreaking federal tax credit for education scholarships. Discover how these initiatives aim to develop servant leaders and restore the core principles of freedom in education.
00:00:03 Introduction to Restoring Education in America
00:00:20 America’s 250th birthday and Excalibur Classical Academy
00:01:54 Introducing the Federal Tax Credit for Education Scholarships
00:03:58 Governor Polis on Encouraging Cross-party Collaboration
Welcome to Restoring Education in America with Priscilla Rahn. She’s a master educator and author leading the conversation to restore the American mind through wisdom, virtue, and truth.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, hello, everybody. Welcome to Restoring Education in America. I’m your host, Priscilla Rahn, and I’m so excited that you’ve decided to join the conversation today. I’m loving how 2026 is starting out. We are celebrating a milestone. It’s America’s 250th birthday. It’s our semi-quincentennial. And ironically, in centennial, there is a new school. opening. It’s called Excalibur Classical Academy, and their mission and vision is restoring America’s heritage by developing servant leaders who are keepers and defenders of the principles of freedom for which our founding fathers pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor. And you can go to their website, Excalibur Classical Academy dot org, to find out some new information about them. But something else that is a milestone here in Colorado is that Congress has enacted the first ever federal tax credit for education scholarships through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The bill creates an individual dollar for dollar tax credit of up to $1,700 per individual taxpayer for contributions to state approved federally recognized nonprofits that distribute scholarships to eligible children. And this will go into effect January of 2027. But your state governor has to opt in. And here to talk about this act is our own governor, Governor Polis. Hi, Governor Polis.
SPEAKER 03 :
Hi, Priscilla. Great to be on the show.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, you and Governor Stein were the first Democrat governors to opt in to the student scholarship initiative. And some governors may choose not to opt into the $1,700 scholarship program over different concerns, including accountability and equity and public school funding. But what convinced you that Colorado should participate despite some of these concerns?
SPEAKER 03 :
Sure. So let me explain to Priscilla. So it’s not for this year. You know, people are going to be working on their taxes in March and April and filing. It’s not for that year. It would be for the following April for, I guess, the money you earn in 26. So when you’re in April of 27, March of 27, people will be able to donate seventeen hundred dollars per person. to a charity that supports kids and scholarships and after school programs, they can choose the charity and they get the $1,700 back as a refundable credit. So basically without costing anything, it’s encouraging giving and charity for people and something to think about that you’ll have this opportunity when you work on your February and March of 27 on your 26 taxes. I think it’s great because it drives more donations to Colorado charities that serve kids. And, you know, some donors will choose charities that you and I might like. Others will choose the some that we don’t like. But there’s going to be a lot of good because, in fact, they have to use more than 90 percent of the money as direct benefits for kids. They they can’t be like administratively bloated or pay their CEOs money. you know millions of dollars 90 of the money to be eligible has to go right out the door for kids in a variety of ways uh after school programs tutoring summer schools scholarships all of those kinds of things uh and it has to help kids that are uh their income is under a certain level so it includes the middle class but it kind of goes up through you know 150 000 or 120 000 a year it depends on exactly where but It has to help kids that are middle class or working or lower income.
SPEAKER 01 :
So, Governor, in your past role as chair of the National Governors Association, you were at the forefront of working with governors across both parties. And how did you encourage your fellow governors both sides? Democrats and Republicans to work together. And how do you think you could continue in your role and your membership in that organization to collaborate on policies like the Education Scholarship Initiative to ensure that they benefit all students nationwide?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, we put out a great report, Let’s Get Ready, Educating All Americans for Success. You can Google that, Let’s Get Ready. And we had a number of recommendations, and Colorado’s acting on them effectively. It’s about better measurement of outcomes to make sure that what we’re doing works for kids. And that’s whether it’s their conventional school day or some of these opportunities that are supported by these scholarships that people, donors fund. We want to make sure they have good results for kids, right? Nobody wants to waste money, whether it’s the state, whether it’s a private donor, whether it’s the parent. They want to make sure that kids are having good outcomes, meaning they’re able to read and write and do math at grade level or above. And then as you get into high school, are they getting a job skill that allows them to succeed, a certificate or associates program or apprenticeship? And how are we making sure that actually ties into successful outcome and earning a good living?
SPEAKER 01 :
So Governor Polis, you have always been a proponent of education. You’ve started charter schools. You have supported full-day kindergarten and preschool, and you served on the Colorado Department of Education. You’ve been in Congress. You’ve served in all of these roles. Where does this passion for education come from? And talk a little bit about your philosophy of education.
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, I really view education as the key to long-term success for any society. In Colorado, for our success as a state, our prosperity, our economy, our quality of life, it really all hinges on how well we prepare kids for success. So I started a couple of charter schools. I served on the State Board of Education for six years, and that was the committee I was on in Congress as well, really focused on results first. How do we make sure that students are getting value in the system and that parents have the choice to pick the best option for their kids? kids.
SPEAKER 01 :
You have championed Colorado Universal Preschool Program and all of this money from Rise, $30 to $40 million to help with education funding, both at the K-12 level and higher ed as well. Finally, our CMAS scores in Colorado are at and in some places above pre-pandemic level. So that is something to celebrate. So as you mentioned, the money is going to come after you’ve left office. So and from what I understand, the next governor is going to also have to opt into the program. So let’s assume that they do. And we’re looking at indicators of success. What do you think we as Coloradans and the next governor should expect to see from a successful scholarship program and so that we know that it’s actually working?
SPEAKER 03 :
better outcomes for kids and one of the ways we increase math scores so much as we funded after school math support and then online licensing for high quality uh you know online math systems earn and we’ve really seen a major upgrade in math curriculum over the last couple years and we’re already seeing the results but no if this is working kids should see better results meaning of course you’re able to read and write new math better they’re able to also get skills that relate to jobs better especially as you’re more in the middle high school side it can be used for everything from you know training to be a lifeguard or training in in work skills and practical skills like welding so more opportunities like that for kids and it’s really uh up to the imagination of the charities themselves and it’ll be up to them obviously to attract particular donors to give but the wonderful thing is it’s like every coloradan will have seventeen hundred dollars they can give to the charity of their choice and it doesn’t cost them a penny so i hope that many coloradans participate it’s just funding new funding for kids, and I hope that people pick it up and do it.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah, I mean, $1,700 seems doable. You don’t have to be extremely wealthy in order to donate hundreds of thousands.
SPEAKER 03 :
Right, and that’s the rub. You might get it back a few months later, right? So I understand not everybody can afford to do that, but you might get the refundable tax credit right away on your taxes, but it might be several months later with your tax refund. But yeah, I hope that everybody can do that, and the more people do it, the more money it generates to help kids.
SPEAKER 01 :
So talking about that, there are some rules that folks are gonna have to follow and there are some existing scholarship granting organizations like ACE. A lot of us know about ACE scholarships that currently exist. And there are criteria for becoming one of these SGOs. Is there currently a website and a timeline for selecting SGOs and publishing those lists on the public site for people to access?
SPEAKER 03 :
So there’s not yet. And obviously, ACE will be one of them. I mean, of course, that’s who really was contemplated by the bill. What everybody is waiting on are the guidelines from the Department of Treasury about exactly where the parameters are in eligibility requirements. but I expect there’ll be a number of existing nonprofits. It could, for instance, be like Boys and Girls Clubs, folks like that, depending on how they’re written. And it could be sister organizations to neighborhood schools that want to provide, for instance, you know, additional educational services from 3 to 5 p.m., right, and be able to compensate the teachers to be there and work with kids. So I think you’re going to see a wide variety of these, and I think everybody is waiting on the exact guidelines from the Department of Treasury.
SPEAKER 01 :
Good. So everybody listening, make sure that you go check out. Will it be at the state website? Will there be a link?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, yes, we’ll do that. And this will be, again, not imminent, right? Because it’s not, I think probably towards the end of 27, folks will be starting to kind of market who you give to and how you support that. Remember, this is the year we opt in, and then it wouldn’t affect anything until your 27 taxes. I mean, I’d want the federal government to move as fast as they can on this, but that’s kind of what the law said. And And so it’s not right away. But I think as the guidelines come, which I hope will come in the next few months, that’ll help charities plan about participating. And so I think those decisions will probably be made, you know, in, you know, early 27, late 26, that sort of thing.
SPEAKER 01 :
So that’s good to watch out for. So Governor, I’ve been in public education my entire career. This is actually year 32 for me. I’m still a full-time teacher in Denver Public Schools and it’s constantly changing and we’re always talking about like school choice and we’re talking about affordability of college and those types of things. So with ongoing debate about student debt and the rising cost of college, do you see this federal initiative or initiatives like this potentially being a model for tackling larger educational challenges?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, you know, this encourages creativity. The feds are paying for it. It’s kind of free money from our state perspective, right? And it’s driven by whoever people want to donate. It definitely will cause a big influx of funding for a lot of nonprofits that are doing great work with kids. And they’re not all going to show results. I mean, I’m sure that there are some that won’t show improved outcomes for kids, but there are many that will. And that includes, you know, for instance, in Denver public schools, schools that serve low income kids being able to add high quality tutoring and after school services, or maybe the families want and the kids want to be able to come to school on a Saturday and have a supplemental service to help them catch up if they’re behind. All of those kinds of things are things that can be funded with this.
SPEAKER 01 :
That’s great. I know a lot of parents are looking at different choices. It’s right now we’re in the middle of school choice options and parents are looking at different places that they want to take their kids, not only for pre-K, but also for enrichment programs and all of these different wonderful options where parents are not just limited to academics like math and literacy, but there are other creative things like horseback riding or ranching or really wonderful options for, for parents. And I’m assuming you are a proponent of like all this variety.
SPEAKER 03 :
Yes. And this can support those, those additional enrichment program. It could be a music program, performing arts, all of those kinds of things that often frankly suffer from lack of resources. Cause when districts have to make tough decisions, they often, you know, say, well, we got to do the academics and we don’t need to do the enrichment. Well, the enrichment is very important. And this can help fund some of those activities outside of the normal school hours.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, we definitely need to get the word out. So for my listeners and other educators, start talking about this because I know I’m also a music teacher. So I love the fact that we can get more students involved in music and different arts and things like that. But we have a few more minutes left, Governor. My show is called Restoring Education in America. I did write a book called Restoring Education in America. You can see it. You can get it on Amazon, folks. Make sure you go to Amazon. Yeah. What do you view as the most urgent need in America’s education? And what do we need to do to restore education in America?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, first of all, as you know, a big supporter of early childhood education. That’s when I ran for governor of Colorado only at half-day kindergarten. Parents had to pay for full day. We now have free full-day kindergarten and free half-day preschool for every child getting that strong start. And then I really think the focus on outcomes. How do we make sure that what we’re doing works? And it’s not the same for every kid. But how do we make sure that we’re able to provide value In education, and that means preparing a kid for success, whether that means going on to higher admin or there means entering the workforce with a skill or certificate that allows them to earn a good living. We need to make sure that we’re more accountable for delivering on that value to parents and for children.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, thank you. And the last thing, I’m just gonna go put a request in for the upcoming legislative session. I know prior to COVID, teachers got, teachers who are national board certified. It’s in state statute that we get this tiny little stipend, $1,800 a year. And then when COVID hit, we stopped getting that. And that’s the top, less than 1% of Colorado teachers are national board certified. And it’s such a rigorous program. And we’re supposedly master teachers now. And ever since then, the state legislature hasn’t funded that. So maybe you can talk to our friends down at the Capitol and say, it’s not that much money. when you look at the pot. So maybe they can help us teachers, you know, get a little bit more money in our pockets.
SPEAKER 03 :
Please talk to the legislators about that. And obviously the quality of the classroom professional is so important in the outcome for the kid. And we want to make sure that we have the very best teachers in Colorado and support them as well as we can as a state.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, thank you again for opting into the tax scholarship. I know so many parents and children are grateful for your decision and your leadership in the nation in that arena. And hopefully other governors will follow your lead and let’s get more money into education and helping all of our kids. So thank you so much, Governor.
SPEAKER 03 :
Thank you, Priscilla. Take care.
SPEAKER 01 :
You too. Well, there you have it, everybody. Our governor has taken the lead in opting into what sounds like a very great option, thanks to President Trump’s big, beautiful bill. And I would encourage you to continue to just look out for more concrete information, not only on how to create an SGO, but how to donate and how you’d be able to access the funding in 2027. There’s a lot of conversation right now about what’s going on with funding for children. You know, we’re talking about what’s happening in Minnesota and, you know, the accountability or I should say the lack of accountability and the fraud that’s been happening. And I know I’ve been paying attention to a lot of conversations around increased taxes. And I’ve said this before on my show. Anytime you put something on a ballot where you say it’s for the children, the voters will vote for it. And so we have to be really diligent about what we’re doing with funding. There’s the Child Care for Working Families Act that sounds really good on paper, but the fewer parents that we have raising their children, the worse off our society is. That’s another big conversation that’s happening right now because I don’t believe it’s the proper role of government to raise our children. I don’t believe it’s the proper role of government to subsidize education. We are better off having a parent at home raising the children, investing in them, and being the first educator of our children. The government is not doing a good job in raising our children. We saw that during COVID where parents started to see the indoctrination that was happening and they realize that the school system was taking over as the parent. We have had children taken away from parents these days because the government system has said, we are the trusted adult. We are the ones that know your children better than you. We’re the teacher. And you’re the parent, and we are the ones that know better about how to educate children. And all of this has damaged the family. So we really need to right this ship. We need to go back to what worked before, where we had intact families. And I say, Mary, before you carry, don’t get pregnant and start having a bunch of babies. And then next thing you know, you can’t take care of them, and you’re applying for welfare. Okay? We definitely need to go back to teaching certain character traits, A, kindness, humanitarianism, but we also need to teach young people what characters to look for in a life partner. And the Bible talks about the older women teaching the younger women. That’s really critical. I don’t think we do enough of that where we’re giving advice, life advice, how to make choices, but then also how to be responsible for your own choices. But we’re living in a society right now where we’ve raised a generation of kids who expect something for nothing. They expect a handout. They think the government should be taking care of everything, including educating children. Did you know? that there’s nothing in our U.S. Constitution that talks about public education. Did you know that we didn’t even used to have a federal department of education? And I believe we were educating children better, but it needs to come back local. And that’s why I’m not bothered by the elimination of the Federal Department of Education. Are you trying to tell me that education from D.C. is better than local education? I don’t think so. I think that we can have local school boards and parents driving what education looks like and keeping that money local instead of sending billions of dollars to Washington, D.C., And I don’t worry about how are we going to educate special needs children or how are we going to accommodate the needs of children and make sure that we are treating all human beings with the same level of respect and that we’re not discriminating. We’re smart enough that we know how to do that. We can be accountable. We don’t need the federal government telling us how to treat one another. We just need to treat one another with dignity. But until we get to that point, yes, there’s going to have to be what we call fiscal hygiene. You know, we need to talk more about Doge. We need to talk more about how we are keeping public education and other education funding sources accountable for what they say they’re doing. I mean, it’s a disgrace. Now, every state is looking at, do we have daycares like Minnesota that are not truly daycares that are taking money? Okay, that’s a whole nother show. That’s an entirely different conversation that we can have. But going back to the Child Care for Working Families Act, you know, I don’t know how much you save by working and having the government subsidize your daycare. Daycare is really expensive. So you’re better off making some financial sacrifices. If you’re a two-parent family, one parent stays home and raises the children, you’re not gonna get that time back. You’re never going to regret. I’ve never met a parent who regretted quitting working and staying home to raise their children until they became school-aged. Trust me, there’s a lot of scary things that happen in these daycares and public education, if you can stay home and you can raise your children, you are going to be better off in giving your child a chance at a better life. So I would encourage you to do that. But going back to the tax credit, there are organizations who are opposing tax the governor opting in. And one of those organizations is CEA, the Colorado Education Association, which is our state’s union. And I’ve talked openly about how I was not just a member of the union. I was a leader in the union. I was the treasurer, the secretary. I was on the local PAC. I was on the CEA PAC, the Political Action Committee, which donated money thousands and thousands of dollars to Democrat candidates. And it’s no wonder the CEA is opposing this tax credit, which, again, doesn’t take any money out of the federal government. It doesn’t take money away from public education. This is a free will act. Love offering, if you will, from individuals to help other individuals. It’s from us as we the people, which I think it’s the way it should be. If I want to work and I want to freely donate my money to help another student access education, then that should be my choice. And to think that an education association is opposing it is appalling to me. Shame on you, CEA. Who are you to say that individuals should not freely give their money to education organizations? I was there when you wanted to take teacher union dues and send it to undocumented students at the border. You wanted to send our local union dues to undocumented students in California. But you want to tell our governor that he should not allow us the free will and free choice to donate our own money to help students. educate students. That is the highest level of hypocrisy that I’ve heard. And there’s no excuse. And what you’re doing as you perpetuate this message of no to donating money for education is is you’re damaging students’ opportunity to access a high-level rigorous education. You’re standing in the way of democracy, and that’s not what democracy looks like, okay? So I think, CEA, you need to sit down, let people choose where they want to spend their money. It’s called capitalism, where I earn money and I spend it how I choose to. And you have nothing to say. OK, instead of encouraging families and donors to help put money into a pot to support enrichment programs and education and scholarships, you’re telling the governor no. And why? Because you think it’s going to impact public education. It’s not. And maybe you should focus on providing a high-level, high-quality, rigorous education for public school students. I’ve been in public education my entire 32-year career, and I left the teachers’ union because of stuff like this. I left the teachers’ union because the union does not advocate for high-level, rigorous education. You will not go down to the Capitol and advocate for our national board-certified scholarships. You’re silent while our best and brightest master teachers are going without their state mandated stipends. Make it make sense. So if you’re a teacher and you’re listening to this and the only reason why you’re still in the teacher’s union is because you are afraid of losing your liability insurance, I have good news for you. You can give yourself a raise. You can drop your membership of the Teachers Union and you can join other organizations, one of which is Teacher Freedom Alliance. It’s free to join and you get $2 million of liability insurance. So you can go to teacherfreedomalliance.org and you can learn more about joining Teacher Freedom Alliance. Some places they’re charging $70 a month or more. Okay, that’s a lot of money that you can put gas in your car, invest, you know, buy supplies for your classroom if you want to. There are a lot of options for you. So I would encourage teachers to take a look at Teacher Freedom Alliance. And once again, thanks for tuning into my show. Catch me next time. And remember, educating the mind without the heart is no education. So seek wisdom, cultivate virtue, and speak truth.
SPEAKER 02 :
Thanks for tuning in to Restoring Education in America with Priscilla Rahn. Visit PriscillaRahn.com to connect or learn how you can sponsor future episodes to keep this message of faith, freedom, and education on the air.
