State budget negotiations are full of false dichotomies. We are forced to choose loyalties between public, charter, or private schools. But is that really our only choice? While policymakers debate whether to spend more or less on education, perhaps we might ask, “How can we spend differently?”

Could it be that both Republicans and Democrats finally agree that a child’s ZIP code, ethnicity, or class should not determine whether they have access to a high-quality education?

As a parent of six children though, I am moderately annoyed by the suggestion that parents should just butt out when it comes to their kid’s education.

While parents may not control what is taught in school, they at least deserve to have clarity about a school’s goals, beliefs, and methods.

America’s culture wars are intensifying in the nation’s classrooms and board meetings. How long can this public institution withstand the tug-of-war between ideologically opposed groups?

We build gates in communities that are restricted with key-code access, and erect fences in our neighborhoods to mark off our territory, give us privacy from our neighbors, and safety from unwanted intruders.

The logic of good fences seems indisputable. Fences keep little kids and pets within our boundaries, but more importantly, they keep the unwanted and unwelcome out.