The Alliance for the Separation of School & State is dedicated to helping families choose academic independence by freeing themselves from government schools and to educating the public about the history of and danger of state-controlled education. We support the complete separation of school and state.

The Alliance provides understanding and resources through our web site, conferences and speaking engagements, literature, audio and visual materials, boothing at fairs and conferences, and partnerships with sister organizations. We also work to connect individuals and groups who can help one another realize the vision of academic freedom for all children.

Useful Information

Alliance for the Separation of School & State

3100 Willow Ave., Suite 110, Clovis, CA 93612

Toll Free: 1-888-325-1776
Web: http://www.schoolandstate.org

Alliance Founder:  Marshall Fritz - Rest in Peace - 1943-2008

After a career with IBM and founding Advocates for Self-Government as well as a private school, Marshall Fritz turned to the concept that the problem with schooling was government control. He founded the Alliance in 1994. Marshall was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in February 2008. He passed away on November 4, 2008.

Alliance Story/History:  Learn more about the Alliance!

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Useful Facts and Figures

• Number of public school primary and secondary students in US (2002-03): 48,375,400. 

• Number of private school primary and secondary students in US (2003-04): 6,256,000 (11.5% of all US students).

• Number of private primary and secondary schools in US (2001-02): Over 29,000 (23% of all US primary and secondary schools).

• Number of home schooled students in US (2002-03): 1.1 to 2 million.  Note: The actual number is almost certainly closer to the 2 million mark. The varying reporting requirements of individual states make an accurate count difficult to assess.

• A December 1999 study found that 90% of Americans believe parents should have the right to send their children to school where they wish and that 55% of parents with children in public school would like to send them to private school.
  

View list of well-known signers of our proclamation:  "I proclaim publicly that I favor ending government involvement in education."

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Quick Answers to Common Questions

Why shouldn't the government be involved in education?

Our government is constitutionally prohibited from abridging our freedom of worship, speech, press and assembly. Not only do our founding documents protect us from politicians who would rob us of our liberties, they safeguard us from special interests and other power-seekers who would use the government to dominate others. By placing the minds of our children under the control of the government and the many individuals and groups who use the government to effect their ends, we essentially cancel the protections of our constitution. We've been suffering the results of state education for a long time now, but because children are taught by their government that the state is good and beneficent, that it is the only adequate repository of knowledge, we have come to fear intellectual freedom and to suspect those who embrace it.

Wouldn't ending state schooling hurt the poor and disadvantaged who couldn't afford private schooling?

One look at our inner city and poor rural public schools should convince us that the state already does a deplorable job of educating the disadvantaged. Many philanthropists and organizations are already addressing this problem with scholarships for the needy. All evidence indicates that as education becomes freer of state control, Americans will step up to the plate to help the less fortunate offer their children true opportunity and a bright future.

Who would keep private schools accountable?

It's already clear that public schools are accountable to almost no one, including parents. Private schools, on the other hand, are fully accountable to the people who pay for them. When parents pay directly for their children's education, they expect results. If they don't get them, they are free to leave the school at any time.

Why can't we just reform public schools?

This is what we've been doing for over 150 years now. It's time to face the fact that our experiment in state schooling is flawed in its very concept. We cannot afford to keep sacrificing one generation of children after another just because we can't admit we've made a mistake or because some people don't want to give up their power or influence.

Don't public schools encourage tolerance and diversity?

If this were the case, we should see the results by now. Instead, we see quite the opposite, and we must consider the strong possibility that public schools actually foster resentment and hostility between various groups. There are thousands of private schools with diverse student populations that operate without any of the conflict that so many public schools do. Further, the home schooling community fully embraces the increasing variety of families that are joining its ranks each year.

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See answers to other frequently asked questions in The Case for Separation (as well as more in-depth answers to the questions above).

To Our Friends (and even our foes) in the media:

Please feel free to contact our office if you would like to speak with Alan: Toll Free 1-888-325-1776.