I’ve often heard posed the question, “If charter schools are so great, why not make all public schools charter schools?” Here’s the answer… Traditional public schools are required to educate any child who lives within the district walks through the schoolhouse door. While charter schools are prohibited from discriminating based upon race, religion, etc., they can – […]
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At a December meeting of the House and Senate Education Committees, members heard presentations on two important reform measures: charter schools and a third-grade reading initiative. Charter School Bill Committee members were presented with a description of a charter school bill being proposed by Senate Education Chairman Gray Tollison. The bill, as presented, contains a
House and Senate Education Committees Hear Reform Plans Read More »
At a December 12, 2012 joint meeting of the House and Senate Education Committees, members heard a description of a charter school bill proposed by Senate Education Chairman Gray Tollison. The bill, as presented, contains a number of provisions that are extremely worrisome. Similar provisions have contributed to a disproportionate number of charter school failures
House & Senate Ed Committee Members Presented Charter Bill Read More »
Governor Bryant has announced his education agenda for the 2013 Legislative Session. The plan includes: A reading initiative to improve literacy – The program calls for mandatory retention of children not reading on grade level by the end of third grade and for a similar “gate” in seventh grade; Governor Bryant is requesting $15 Million
Governor Bryant Unveils Education Agenda Read More »
A charter school is a school that is funded with public tax dollars and run by a private entity. Charter schools are usually freed from many of the regulations governing traditional public schools. The original intent of charter schools was to provide them freedom to operate, in order to encourage innovation, while holding the charters to
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As states have opened the door for investors to gain access to tax dollars through for-profit charter schools, an entire industry has developed. It is now booming, with private equity groups holding conferences to recruit hedge fund managers and others to invest in for-profit education opportunities, teaching them how to profit from state education dollars. (Click here to read
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In November 2012, the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) launched a campaign to improve the overall quality of charter schools and increase the frequency of closing failing charter schools. NACSA is challenging states to tighten charter school laws to increase the likelihood of success and to do a better job of holding charters and
For-profit companies have discovered that there is a lot of money to be made from public education dollars, and they are taking advantage of that fact. In many states, for-profit ventures with no experience running successful schools are being granted charters. Often these schools are run on the cheap in order for the companies to pay
School Board Members Could be Subject to Lobbying & Lobbyist-funded Opponents Read More »
In 2001, Florida launched an Intensive Reading Initiative designed to improve dramatically the literacy of the state’s elementary students. With a $1-billion initial investment ($750-million in the first year), they implemented sweeping changes that touched every K-3 student and teacher: $300-million six-year Reading First grant to retrain all K-3 teachers on appropriate reading techniques. $700-million of repurposed state funding to
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Since 1999, Florida has invested billions of dollars in real education reform that has catapulted the state’s student achievement into the realm of some of the highest performing countries. How Did They Do It? State-funded pre-K – $398Million/year Intensive reading initiative – $1Billion initial investment and $130Million/year ongoing Click here to read more Lowered class size – Lower elementary
Florida and Student Achievement Read More »
