REAGAN FOUNDATION LAUNCHES "REAGANOMICS" CURRICULUM BASED ON PRESIDENT REAGAN'S SIGNING OF THE ECONOMIC RECOVERY TAX ACT OF 1981

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SIMI VALLEY, Calif., March 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Just over 40 years ago, President Ronald Reagan signed the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981, saying, "These bills that I'm about to sign…represent a turnaround of almost a half a century of a course this country's been on and mark an end to the excessive growth in government bureaucracy, government spending, government taxing."

As our nation faces the highest rates of inflation since the early 1980s, it is clear that it is essential to understand how leaders in the past have responded to these sorts of challenges. To ensure that the youth of today continue to be taught the important economic lessons President Reagan fought so hard to instill in our nation, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute is launching "Reaganomics 101," a brand-new set of primary source based materials for classrooms across our nation.

"It's critical that we emphasize the value of free markets and capitalism in our nation's schools. Our 'Reaganomics 101' course is meant to do just that." said John Heubusch, executive director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute. "Just this month, the U.S. inflation rate hit a 40-year high of 7.5%[1]. It is absolutely essential that young people understand how Ronald Reagan's economic policies helped combat inflation and set the U.S. on a course for decades long prosperity."

Through the use of primary source material gathered from the Reagan Library archives, contemporary interviews with leading economists and free market proponents, animated videos and more, the Reagan Foundation & Institute aims to reintroduce the teaching of economic principles that allowed President Reagan to successfully revive the worst economic mess since the Great Depression.

"When President Reagan took office in1981, the country was experiencing some of the bleakest economic times on record," said Heubusch "By the end of his presidency, Ronald Reagan and his administration helped millions of people get good jobs and to keep more of the money for which they worked so hard, the federal government was on a much-needed diet, and businesses were no longer hassled or paralyzed by the government.  In a phrase – the American dream had been restored."

The curriculum, which will be available in the months to come on www.ReaganFoundation.org/education, aims to tell the story of how Ronald Reagan's embrace of "supply side" economic policies led to historic tax rate reductions which, in turn, unleashed at the time the longest peace time economic recovery in our nation's history.   

In addition to the primary source materials from the Reagan Archives which focuses on the four pillars President Reagan introduced during his economic policy plan – reducing corporate and individual taxes, reducing government spending, reducing regulation, and tightening the money supply to reduce inflation - the curriculum includes recent interviews with economist Dr. Art Laffer, former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, Senator Rand Paul, and others.

"Young people are succumbing to the notion that socialism is a good idea, and I think Ronald Reagan, if he were alive, would shudder at the thought," said Senator Rand Paul.  "I wonder what the people running as socialists today missed in history class…We really want to make sure that the word gets out that the reason why America is so great is because of capitalism."

"What Ronald Reagan did," said former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, "was unleash the creativity of the American people, the workers, the small businesses…that really showed the power of freedom economics, which is free enterprise."

This curriculum launch is part of the milestone events the Reagan Foundation will be celebrating during this unprecedented 40^th anniversary milestone year of Ronald Reagan becoming the 40^th president of the United States.  It's a year to re-examine his legacy, re-tell one of America's greatest stories, re-live a remarkable presidency, and introduce this American icon to a new generation.  This is 40 at 40; the 40^th anniversary of our 40^th president's inaugural year.  Learn more at www.reaganfoundation.org/40at40 and follow #40at40 on Twitter where the Reagan Foundation is posting once a day to relive what President Reagan did 40 years ago that day.

The Reaganomics 101 Education Curriculum program is funded by The Copses Family Foundation, a private foundation established by Peter P. Copses and Judith V. Mueller to promote, among other causes, economic liberty and free market capitalism.  Additional support for the program was also provided by Gary Simons and Andy Puzder.

"The Copses Family Foundation is proud to have sponsored the creation of Reaganomics 101," said Peter P. Copses.  "President Reagan was the foremost promoter of free market capitalism in my lifetime, and his policies unleashed decades of prosperity for America. Unfortunately, we are now turning away from these successful policies, and younger generations of Americans are being taught a very negative view of capitalism and markets that is historically inaccurate. We hope that Reaganomics 101 will help to correct this perception and contribute to preserving prosperity for our children's generation."

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute is the nonprofit organization created by President Reagan himself and specifically charged by him with continuing his legacy and sharing his principles - individual liberty, economic opportunity, global democracy and national pride. The Foundation is a non-partisan organization which sustains the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, CA, the Reagan  Center for Public Affairs, the Presidential Learning Center, The Air Force One Pavilion and the award-winning Discovery Center, as well as the Reagan Institute, which carries out the Foundation's work in Washington, D.C. 

The Reagan Library houses over 60 million pages of Gubernatorial, Presidential and personal papers, over 1.6 million photographs, a half million feet of motion picture film, 25,000 audio recordings, 22,000 video recordings, and over 83,000 objects chronicling the lives of Ronald and Nancy Reagan.  It also serves as the final resting place of America's 40th President and his First Lady. www.reaganfoundation.org

Contact:  Melissa Giller
               [email protected]

SOURCE The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute