The Power of Choice

In 1991, Jack and Isabelle McVaugh were captivated by the Wall Street Journal's profile on Pat Rooney.  Rooney, chairman of the board of Golden Rule Insurance Company at the time of the article, encouraged the state legislature to fund private school tuition with state resources. When his attempt did not succeed, the Indiana billionaire created a privately funded school choice scholarship program for students from low-income families in Indina.

After reading the article, Jack and Isabelle McVaugh, recent Arizona retirees,  were impressed with what they read about Rooney’s initiative. The McVaugh's were fortunate to be able to afford to send their children to the best schools possible, but knew that some families, especially with lower incomes, did not have the same opportunity. Their vision was to enhance K-12 education for all Arizona school children by giving parents freedom to choose the school that best met their children's needs, regardless of income.

On May 11, 1993, with the help of friends and associates, ASCT was established. The initial program served Maricopa County residents whose household income qualified for the federal free and reduced-price school lunch program.  Within 10 days of publishing a request for applications for the ASCT program in the Arizona Republic newspaper, 500 students applied and were on the waiting list for scholarships.  What started in 1993 with 54 privately-funded scholarships has grown to almost 1,000 annual scholarships to children from low-income families in Arizona.

ASCT has helped thousands of families achieve educational freedom through its scholarship program. ASCT serves the most number of schools throughout Arizona with no preference to religious affiliation. ASCT was providing tuition scholarships for nearly five years prior to the passage of tax credit legislation in 1997.