Dive Brief:

• The Center for Education Reform has released its annual Parent Power Index, which ranks states based on the number of educational options families have access to.  
• Indiana, Florida, Arizona, the District of Columbia, and Georgia top the rankings this year.
• According to CER President Kara Kerwin, states are evaluated by qualitative and quantitative polices around five topics: charter schools, school choice, teacher quality, transparency, and online learning. 

Dive Insight:

“The index tool is for parents and policy makers to use in order to understand what policies and laws may be needed to bring about better educational opportunities," Kerwin told the St. George Daily Spectrum, a newspaper based in sixth-place Utah.  

While these rankings are interesting, it's important to remember they're coming from a partisan group with a clear agenda. For example, states get marked down if there is a cap on charter schools, a move some states make to maintain accountability and standards around their schools.