US Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Houston) and US Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) will join KIPP Co-Founder Mike Feinberg and Houston Independent School District Superintendent Terry Grier to speak at the Official Kickoff of National School Choice Week 2014, organizers announced today.

The event, which will be held at 4:30 pm on January 25, 2014 at Union Station at Minute Maid Park in Houston, will bring together supporters of all types of effective education options for children -- from traditional public schools to magnet schools, charter schools, online academies, private schools, and homeschooling. The event, emceed by Cristo Rey Jesuit College Preparatory School of Houston Founder and President, Father T.J. Martinez, will officially launch National School Choice Week, which will feature an unprecedented 5,500 independently-planned and independently-funded school choice events across America.

"National School Choice Week, and the broader movement to ensure that every child in America has access to an excellent education, brings together leaders who may not agree on many issues, but can come together and celebrate educational opportunity," said Andrew Campanella, president of National School Choice Week. "We are honored to have Sen. Cruz, Congresswoman Jackson Lee, Mike Feinberg, and Superintendent Grier join with students, parents, teachers, school leaders and community members to kick off our positive Week of events."

In addition to remarks by Sen. Cruz, Rep. Jackson Lee, Superintendent Grier and KIPP Co-Founder Feinberg, the event will feature live satellite "look-ins" at other National School Choice Week events taking place across the country, as well as student speeches and performances.

"Throughout my career, I have fought for public education and for families," said Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee. "National School Choice Week educates parents about the opportunities that they have, while sending a message that more families need and deserve greater opportunities. I am looking forward to joining in this positive, uplifting celebration."

"School choice is the civil rights battle of this generation," said Sen. Cruz. "Every child in America deserves the chance to get a quality education and work to achieve the American Dream. All across the nation, we're seeing the benefits of choice. The data demonstrates that competition improves public schools, and parents should be able to choose the schools that best meet the educational needs of their children - whether public, charter, private, faith-based, or home school. National School Choice Week reaffirms our shared commitment to giving all children, regardless of zip code, the opportunity to pursue the best education possible."

"The entire Houston Independent School District looks forward to celebrating National School Choice Week and to shining a positive spotlight on the effective educational opportunities we have here in the public sector," said Superintendent Grier. "Houston is a district of choice for so many families, and we are honored to join with other districts, as well as with our colleagues in various sectors of education, to participate in this event."

"Through the work of many dedicated individuals inside and outside of education, Houston has created and replicated schools that have changed life trajectories for thousands of underserved students," said Feinberg, who, along with Dave Levin, founded KIPP in 1994. "We look forward to rolling up our sleeves and teaming up with educators and community leaders across Houston to open even more doors of opportunity for young people in the coming years."

"The odds of making it through high school, and getting to and through college to career should never be dictated by where you live or your family's income level," said Jason Bernal, President of YES Prep, a network of thirteen high-performing public charter schools in Houston, TX, another partner in the National School Choice Week kickoff. "Too often, though, that's the case. Charter and district schools must work with parent and community groups, educators and elected officials to ensure that families from low income communities are informed and have a range of strong public schools to choose from - that's exactly what's happening here in Houston, and it's a model for the rest of the country."

For more information about the Official Kickoff, please visit www.schoolchoiceweek.com.

National School Choice Week
Allison Schneider, 800-640-2671 ext. 104
allison@schoolchoiceweek.com