Quality Choices for All
As National School Choice Week concludes, I have been thinking a lot about what it will take to make school choice a reality for all children in America and not just … Read More
Author: Parker Baxter
@Parker_Baxter
Demystifying School Choice
This week at the Fordham Foundation’s event on the National Alliance for Public Charter School’s new state-by-state report on the health of the charter school movement, Scott Pearson, Executive Director of the … Read More
Responsible Governance, Strong Authorizing, and Smart Policy
NACSA’s Alex Medler and I have published an op-ed over at Real Clear Education on steps that charter school governing boards, authorizers, and policymakers can take to prevent charter school collapse: While many charters … Read More
No Time to Waste
Implementation of the Common Core State Standards will present an array of new challenges everywhere they are adopted. The biggest challenge for charter school authorizers will be maintaining strong accountability for school … Read More
Accountability in Action
At the heart of the charter school concept is the idea that schools, like all organizations, are most effective when they have the flexibility necessary to be captains of their destiny and … Read More
Collaborate to Innovate
Special education service coordination and accountability are often areas where charter schools and their authorizers experience conflict and tension. And too often school districts and charters end up fighting over resources and … Read More
Restarting for Real
A recent story in the Columbus Dispatch detailed the creative ways that low-performing charter schools in Ohio are avoiding closure. According to the report, “some schools have avoided the state’s charter-closing laws … Read More
Improve Quality with Smart Policy and Strong Accountability
Last week, The Oregonian published an op-ed by NACSA president and CEO, Greg Richmond, arguing that the best way to improve the state’s charter schools is to strengthen accountability for their performance. Greg … Read More
On Charter School Discipline: Autonomy, Due Process, and Shared Responsibility
Yesterday, the SUNY Charter Schools Institute hosted a seminar for authorizers and charter school leaders on the laws governing school discipline. In New York, as in most states, charter schools have broad … Read More
Standing Up for Quality
Speaking of creating an ecosystem for charter school accountability, here is Bill Phillips, president of the Northeast Charter School Network (NECSN) with a call for clear quality standards for charter school renewal … Read More