WASHINGTON, Jan. 28, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A record number of US governors, mayors, and county leaders are taking part in the largest-ever series of education-related events in U.S. history – by issuing official proclamations recognizing Jan. 25-31 as School Choice Week in their states and localities.

These 158 proclamations were issued by 64 Democratic and 43 Republican mayors of cities like Anchorage, Baltimore, Buffalo, Cedar Rapids, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Ft. Worth, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Memphis, Miami, Montgomery, Nashville, New Orleans, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Diego, Seattle, and Tulsa.

Governors in Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming have proclaimed School Choice Week in their states.

"Families all across the country are celebrating the freedom to choose the right schools for their children this week. As people nationwide gather to support opportunity in education, it's clear that elected officials are standing up and taking note," said Andrew Campanella, president of National School Choice Week. "There's no political or geographic barrier to supporting educational options for parents and kids, which is why we see Democrats and Republicans from every region of the country recognizing School Choice Week."

Held every January, National School Choice Week is an independent public awareness effort. National School Choice Week 2015 will be America's largest-ever celebration of opportunity in education. Featuring more than 11,000 independently organized events across all 50 states, the Week shines a positive spotlight on effective education options for children. National School Choice Week is independent, nonpolitical, and nonpartisan, and embraces all types of educational choice – from traditional public schools to public charter schools, magnet schools, online learning, private schools, and homeschooling.

A full list of elected officials issuing School Choice Week proclamations is attached.

School Choice Week Proclamations Issued

GOVERNORS

• Alabama (Robert Bentley – R)
• Delaware (Jack Markell – D)
• Florida (Rick Scott – R)
• Georgia (Nathan Deal – R)
• Iowa (Terry Branstad – R)
• Indiana (Mike Pence – R)
• Louisiana (Bobby Jindal – R)
• Michigan (Rick Snyder – R)
• Mississippi (Phil Bryant – R)
• North Carolina (Pat McCrory – R)
• Nebraska (Pete Ricketts – R)
• New Mexico (Susana Martinez – R)
• Nevada (Brian Sandoval – R)
• Ohio (John Kasich – R)
• Oklahoma (Mary Fallin – R)
• South Carolina (Nikki Haley – R)
• Tennessee (Bill Haslam – R)
• Utah (Gary Herbert – R)
• Wisconsin (Scott Walker – R)
• Wyoming (Matt Mead – R)

MAYORS

• Addison, Texas (Todd Meier – D)
• Amarillo, Texas (Paul Harpole – R)
• Anchorage, Alaska (Dan Sullivan – R)
• Arlington, Texas (Robert Cluck – R)
• Atlantic City, New Jersey (Don Guardian – R)
• Aurora, Colorado (Stephen Hogan – R)
• Bakersfield, California (Harvey Hall – D)
• Baltimore, MD (Stephanie Rawlings-Blake – D)
• Baton Rouge, Louisiana (Melvin Holden – D)
• Bessemer, Alabama (Kenneth Gulley – D)
• Birmingham, Alabama (William Bell – D)
• Blackstone, Virginia (William Coleburn – D)
• Bloomington, Illinois (Tari Renner – D)
• Bolingbrook, Illinois (Roger Claar – R)
• Bridgeport, Connecticut (Bill Flinch – D)
• Brookhaven, New York (Edward Romaine)
• Broussard, Louisiana (Charles Langlinais – R)
• Buffalo, New York (Byron Brown – D)
• Canton, Ohio (William Healy – D)
• Cedar Rapids, Iowa (Ron Corbett – R)
• Charleston, South Carolina (Joseph Riley – D)
• Charlotte, North Carolina (Dan Clodfelter – D)
• Chattanooga, Tennessee (Andy Berke – D)
• Cincinnati, Ohio (John Cranley – D)
• Colorado Springs, Colorado (Keith King – R)
• Columbus, Georgia (Teresa Tomlinson – D)
• Costa Mesa, California (Stephen Mesinger – R)
• Davie, Florida (Judy Paul – D)
• Dayton, Ohio (Nan Whaley – D)
• Daytona Beach, Florida (Derrick Henry – D)
• Deerfield Beach, Florida (Jean Robb – D)
• Deltona, Florida (John Masiarczyk – R)
• Durham, North Carolina (Bill Bell – R)
• El Cajon, CA (Bill Wells – R)
• Elk Grove, California (Gary Davis – D)
• Fairfield, California (Harry Price – D)
• Faragut, Tennessee (Ralph McGill – R)
• Fort Worth, Texas (Betsy Price – R)
• Fort Lauderdale, Florida (Jack Seiler – D)
• Fort Myers, Florida (Randall Henderson)
• Fullerton, California (Greg Sebourn – R)
• Galveston, Texas (James Yarbrough – D)
• Gastonia, North Carolina (John Bridgeman – D)
• Gilbert, Arizona (John Lewis – R)
• Hartford, Connecticut (Pedro Segarra – D)
• Houston, Texas (Annise Parker – D)
• Indianapolis, Indiana (Greg Ballard – R)
• Indio, California (Lupe Ramos Watson – R)
• Irving, Texas (Beth Van Duyne – R)
• Kansas City, Kansas (Mark Holland – D)
• Kansas City, Missouri (Sly James – D)
• Lancaster, California (Rex Parris – R)
• Lakeland, Florida (R. Howard Wiggs – R)
• League City, Texas (Timothy Paulissen – R)
• Lewiston, Maine (Robert Macdonald – R)
• Lexington, Kentucky (Jim Gray – D)
• Melbourne, Florida (Kathy Meehan – R)
• Memphis, Tennessee (AC Wharton – D)
• Miami, Florida (Tomas Regaldo – R)
• Midland, Texas (Jerry Morales – D)
• Milpitas, California (Jose Esteves – D)
• Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Tom Barrett – D)
• Mission Viejo, California (Cathy Schlicht – R)
• Montgomery, Alabama (Todd Strange – R)
• Muncie, Indiana (Dennis Tyler – D)
• Nashville, Tennessee (Karl Dean – D)
• Nashua, New Hampshire (Donnalee Lozeau – R)
• New Orleans, Louisiana (Mitch Landrieu – D)
• Niagara Falls, New York (Paul Dyster – D)
• Norfolk, Virginia (Paul Fraim – D)
• North Las Vegas, Nevada (John J. Lee – D)
• Oceanside, California (Jim Wood – R)
• Orlando, Florida (Buddy Dyer – D)
• Owensboro, Kentucky (Ron Payne – R)
• Palm Bay, Florida (William Capote – D)
• Pembroke Pines, Florida (Frank Otis – D)
• Peoria, Illinois (Jim Ardis – R)
• Pine Bluff, Arkansas (Debe Hollingsworth – R)
• Plano, Texas (Harry Larosiliere – D)
• Plantation, Florida (Diane Bendekovic – D)
• Pompano Beach, Florida (Lamar Fisher – D)
• Portland, Oregon (Charlie Hales – D)
• Portsmouth, Virginia (Kenneth Wright – D)
• Prichard, Alabama (Troy Ephriam – D)
• Raleigh, North Carolina (Nancy McFarlane)
• Reading, Pennsylvania (Vaughn Spencer – D)
• Redondo Beach, California (Steve Aspel – R)
• Redwood City, California (Jeffrey Gee – R)
• Reno, Nevada (Hillary Shieve – R)
• Roanoke, Virginia (Bill Bowers – D)
• Rochester, New York (Lovely Warren – D)
• Roseville, California (Carol Garcia – R)
• Sacramento, California (Kevin Johnson – D)
• Salt Lake City, Utah (Ralph Becker – D)
• San Diego, California (Kenneth Faulconer – R)
• San Marcos, California (Jim Desmond – R)
• Savannah, Georgia (Edna Branch Jackson – D)
• Scottsdale, Arizona (Jim Lane – R)
• Seattle, Washington (Ed Murray – D)
• Shreveport, Louisiana (Ollie Tyler – D)
• Sparks, Nevada (Geno Martini – R)
• St. Charles, Missouri (Sally Faith – R)
• St. Joseph, Missouri (Bill Falkner – D)
• St. Louis, Missouri (Francis G. Slay – D)
• Sugarland, Texas (James Thompson – R)
• Tallahassee, Florida (Andrew Gillum – D)
• Tulsa, Oklahoma (Dewey Bartlett – R)
• Tuscaloosa, Alabama (Walter Maddox – R)
• Vacaville, California (Len Augustine – R)
• Victorville, California (Gloria Garcia – D)
• Vineland, New Jersey (Ruben Bermudez – D)
• Warwick, Rhode Island (Scott Avedisian – R)
• West Palm Beach, Florida (Jeri Muoio – D)
• Wichita Falls, Texas (Glenn Barham – R)
• Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin (Zach Vruwink – D)

COUNTIES

• Anne Arundel County, Maryland
• Arapahoe County, Colorado
• Bristol County, Massachusetts
• Bucks County, Pennsylvania
• Clark County, Nevada
• Cochise County, Arizona
• Cook County, Illinois
• Fayette County, Pennsylvania
• Fulton County, Georgia
• Hamilton County, Ohio
• Henrico County, Virginia
• Indian River County, Florida
• Kent County, Michigan
• Montgomery County, Ohio
• Monroe County, New York
• Nassau County, New York
• Pinellas County, Florida
• Prince George's County, Maryland
• Prince William County, Virginia
• Rockland County, New York
• Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania
• Sonoma County, California
• Travis County, Texas

Contact:
Shelby Tankersley
Press Secretary, National School Choice Week
shelby@schoolchoiceweek.com or (202) 480-2927 ext. 2

SOURCE National School Choice Week