School choice is booming in Iowa. Are students better off?


NPR · 19 Apr 2026



With school choice programs ascendant not just in Iowa but across the U.S., Cedar Rapids offers a preview of who wins and who loses when education meets the free market.


Iowa's school choice programs are expanding, prompting a critical examination of their impact on student outcomes. In Cedar Rapids, the effects of these programs reveal a complex landscape where some students thrive while others may be left behind, highlighting the disparities that arise when education is treated as a market commodity.


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