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Next week, January 22-28, is National School Choice Week—only the second in history. Last year, more than 150 organizations came together with a shared mission: ensuring effective education options for every child. Why there should be any controversy surrounding school choice is a mystery.

Public schools work for many students. While 25 percent may drop out, 75 percent graduate and pursue a college degree or enter the workplace. They become productive citizens and lead productive lives.

But for some students, public school as it exists is not the best route to academic success. Minority students in urban districts often bear the brunt of the burden. Teachers in these settings become disillusioned and lose hope.

While voucher programs, charter schools, and private schools have been around for decades, a new page is being turned in the evolution of education. Through technology, we are more empowered than ever to choose what we watch, read, and how we communicate. It only stands to reason that we want the same power when it comes to educating young people.

With more choices available, the public school system as we know it will most likely shrink, and this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Teachers will choose employment in an environment that mirrors their skills and aspirations. Parents will have a say in how and where their kids go to school, and students will be matched with the best program to meet their needs.

While it is understandable that those who believe in public education are reluctant to get on board, fearing that dollars that should be spent improving the current system will be lost to programs that serve only specific segments and populations, what cannot be refuted is that they are all American kids, and they are all our responsibility.

As a believer in public schools, I think that this move challenges them to be better, stronger, and build programs that engage students and ensure a rigorous academic experience. It asks them to stretch and prepare kids for life in the 21st century.

All politics, philosophies, and theories aside, we need to ensure that every kid has the opportunity to learn in a way that works for him, no matter where he gets his education.

School Choice Week celebrates all the things we can do right for our children and empowers teachers, parents, advocacy groups, and students to have a say in the future of education and our nation.

The debate is far from over, and the many faces of school choice are yet to be seen. When the dust settles, I think most of those faces will be smiling…and educated.

Where do you stand of school choice? What are your biggest concerns?