Fifteen years ago, a new Republican president entered the White House heady with talk about revolutionizing K-12 education in America.

At the time, George W. Bush famously made school choice a key plank of his compassionate conservative platform. Many reformers and parents believed they would finally have access to the holy grail of education choice: The ability to send their children to any school regardless of income.

These hopes plummeted as quickly as they rose.

By Jan. 2, 2001 — 18 days before Bush was sworn in — The Washington Post reported, “Bush likely to drop vouchers.” Indeed, the Bush administration quickly jettisoned any substantial school choice programs in favor of the No Child Left Behind Act with Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy.

Read the full op-ed at Washington Times.