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Mission Statement

The California Association of Private School Organizations (CAPSO) is the voice of K-12 private education in California.  Its primary mission is to preserve the independence of California’s private schools and to uphold parental choice in education.  CAPSO, independently, and in collaboration with other community and governmental institutions, is an advocate, catalyst, and creative leader for strengthening and advancing K-12 private education in California.

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CAPSO’s mission is based on the belief that a healthy, pluralistic society depends upon educational options, parental choice, and dialogue and collaboration between educational entities.

About CAPSO

The California Association of Private School Organizations is a consortium of twenty-four pre-collegiate, independent and religious school organizations which strives to promote and preserve understanding among its members, to promote excellence in education throughout the represented schools, and to preserve philosophical and religious values as well as spiritual dimensions of life which are integral parts in the development of our students.

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The Association, while recognizing and encouraging a diversity of beliefs, a variety of educational philosophies, and the independence of each member, strives to represent and speak on educational and public policy issues of common concern and interest.

An affiliate of the Council for American Private Education (CAPE), the Association supports the development of close, professional relationships, open communication and trust among various public and private educational institutions, the California Department of Education and the US Department of Education.

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The Association is committed to the preservation of pluralism in American education and to the right of parents to choose an education appropriate for their own children. To assure and encourage the vitality that freedom of choice fosters, the Association makes known to the public of this state the aims, ideals, and goals to which the member organizations jointly subscribe.

A review of the member bodies of CAPSO reveals the great diversity of private education in the United States. The organizations represent schools, both sectarian and non-sectarian, serving approximately 80% of California’s children from preschool through twelfth grade who are enrolled in the state’s private schools.

Regarding Parental Rights and Governance

CAPSO regards as inviolable parents’ rights to choose for their children an education formulated according to certain clearly enunciated ideals and purposes, and consistent with their own beliefs, philosophy, and/or religious faith.

CAPSO maintains that government should uphold such rights. The role of government in exercising its responsibility for general supervision and control of the educational interests of the state should be directed to the principle that each child shall have equal opportunity of access to an appropriate program of educational experiences.

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CAPSO supports governmental attention to conditions affecting the health, welfare, and safety of children; and further, CAPSO fully subscribes to the established laws prohibiting discrimination.

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However, CAPSO holds that private schools may properly reserve to themselves the formulation of their educational programs and curricula, the regulation of their methods and practices, and the organization of their governance and management.

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