CITIZEN: New tax credit is a Gospel opportunity for KY.

On July 22, Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams signed the paperwork officially enrolling Kentucky into the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit established last year when Congress passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act. The General Assembly made this possible by passing HB 1, sponsored by Representative Kim Moser and co-sponsored by Representative TJ Roberts, which requires Kentucky to opt-in to this powerful new tax credit.

Starting on January 1, 2027, Kentuckians can donate to a Scholarship Granting Organization (SGO) to help fund scholarships for K–12 students at the school of their choice. Those who donate can receive a dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit of up to $1,700, so the donation effectively costs them nothing. Despite false claims by some opposed to educational freedom, no state tax dollars are used or diverted. Instead, the program simply encourages private donations by allowing taxpayers to redirect a portion of their own federal taxes to support the educational option of their choice—private school, homeschool, or public school.

While this program benefits students from all schools, believers should use this opportunity to put a Christian education within reach of every Kentucky family who wants one.

Many Christian parents believe public schools are the best educational option for their children. Some see it as a mission field where they can send their children to evangelize their unbelieving classmates. However, this seldom happens. In fact, 90% of Christian kids in public schools don’t have a Christian worldview. What’s happening instead is parents are sending their children to schools whose foundational assumptions about morality, human nature, and truth are antithetical to a biblical worldview. Over time, their children absorb that worldview, and it has significant consequences for society.

In 2023, Ohio voters amended their state constitution to enshrine abortion up until birth as a “right.” The Center for Christian Virtue (CCV) conducted an exit poll to see why this happened. One of the study’s most striking findings was that, regardless of church attendance, those who voted for the pro-abortion amendment overwhelmingly had been educated in public schools. They also found that seven out of ten students who attended an evangelical high school or were homeschooled voted against the amendment.

The kind of education we give our children matters.

As the late pastor and theologian Voddie Baucham once said, “We cannot continue to send our children to Caesar for their education and be surprised when they come home as Romans.” There is no such thing as a neutral education. All education is rooted in a worldview—an idea of what is true, good, and beautiful.

This is not a new discovery. The first public school in America, the Boston Latin School, was established in Boston, Massachusetts on April 23, 1635. The effort to establish this school was led by Puritan minister John Cotton, and the purpose of the school was to train boys in “godliness and good learning.”

The Puritans understood education as a sacred duty that was essential to sanctification and moral formation. That’s why years after the school was established, laws were put into place requiring towns to establish and fund schools. Notable people who attended this school were Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock.

Expanding Christian education to include more families is a continuation of this early American educational philosophy. Education does more than communicate information; it forms the loves, habits, and imaginations of the next generation. It teaches them what is true, good, and beautiful.

God’s Word is the ultimate standard for truth, goodness, and beauty. Because education teaches students what to love and what to hate, Christians should desire institutions where every subject is taught in light of God’s revelation. Such an education requires teachers who love God and seek to cultivate that same love in their students. This is the tradition and responsibility that Christian schools carry on today.

The reality is, Scripture calls us as parents to train our children in the instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4), not send them into a hostile environment that separates God from their education. But significant financial barriers keep many students in schools that too often teach values at odds with Scripture. If we want more young people to know and love Christ, we must make education that teaches students how to think about all of reality in light of Him more accessible.

This is why Christians should take full advantage of the Education Freedom Tax Credit to transform their tax liability into a powerful investment impacting the next generation for Christ. We have an opportunity to reach an entire generation with the gospel and educate them in Christian truth.

We could have a generation of Christian children being taught the Word of God at home, at school, and at church. We’d even have unbelieving kids being exposed to the gospel and God’s Word. This would bless not only our churches and communities, but our whole Commonwealth and even our nation.

This is why The Family Foundation has launched the Kentucky Christian Education Network (KY CEN). Christian schools can go to kycen.org and apply for membership to take advantage of this tax credit.

Kentucky has opened a door for Christian education. Christians should walk through it