NACSA Blog

NACSA Blog

Press Releases


NACSA Selects Third Cohort for Leaders Program

The success of the charter school sector depends on having strong authorizers capable of managing a portfolio of high-performing schools and ensuring that every charter school provides an outstanding education to its …


Strong Authorizing Practices Produced Better Schools for 230,000 Students in 2013

More than 230,000 students are attending better schools in 2013 because of the actions of charter school authorizers across the country, according to the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA). Authorizers …


National Association of Charter School Authorizers and the Charter School Growth Fund release recommendatons for successful replication of high-performing charter schools

State policies must change to differentiate and grow high-performing charter schools and weed out the low performers according to a report released today by the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) …


NACSA Calls on Nation’s Charter School Authorizers to Act Now to Maintain Accountability

In a statement released today, the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) cautioned that while the upcoming shift to Common Core standards provides a long-term opportunity to improve the nation’s schools, it …


NACSA releases recommendations on accountability measures for alternative charter schools

The National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) today released Anecdotes Aren’t Enough: An Evidence-Based Approach to Accountability for Alternative Charter Schools, a report that sets out recommendations for appropriate accountability systems …


Here’s Who’s Speaking at #NACSAcon This Year…

We have exciting updates for you about our upcoming NACSA Virtual Leadership Conference. Take a look below and head to our brand-new conference website to see all the details and to register …


Charter Schools, COVID Relief Funds, and Single Audits: What Authorizers Should Know

The federal government has allocated unprecedented new resources to K-12 schools in response to the Coronavirus pandemic, much of it via Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds. These new dollars, …


NACSA Statement on 4th U.S. Circuit Court Ruling in Peltier v. Charter Day School

The National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) strongly disagrees with the holding of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Peltier v. Charter Day School, decided August 9, 2021, that a …


Public Charter Schools: Renewal Resource for Charter School Leaders and Authorizers

Public Charter School Renewal Guidance for School Leaders & Authorizers

Renewal guidance for public charter schools The decision to renew — or not — is complex work, requiring the balancing of diverse and often competing interests. The global pandemic brought even more …


Public Charter School Leaders, Renewal is a Time to Tell our Story 

  Running a school is the most challenging and most fulfilling job in education. As the global pandemic hit, “challenging” didn’t even begin to describe what school leaders faced. For charter school …


4 Reasons You Should Attend #NACSAcon

Smart, proactive public charter school authorizing can transform public education. We’ve seen it happen in cities across the country.  How did they do it? What lessons can you take from their struggles and …


Holding Up a Mirror: What to Expect at 2021 NACSA Virtual Leadership Conference for Charter School Authorizers

As educators, we need to recognize the significance of this moment for charter school authorizers. The pandemic has interrupted schooling for millions of children–widening achievement and opportunity gaps that we have all …


Wyoming Gets a New Authorizer Is the Headline, But There’s More to the Story

Last month we touched on a Wyoming bill, SF130, which created a new authorizing pathway in the state. But there is more to the bill that deserves to be highlighted: through a comprehensive overhaul, SF130 significantly improves …


Amid Change, Our Autonomy and Community Are Our Strength

This blog post was written by Dr. Sana Shaikh, who served until this spring as Director of School Operations at Rise Prep High School, an autonomous school in Springfield, Massachusetts. Rise Prep is …


One of Our “COVID Keepers”: Putting Communities First in Public Charter Schools

This blog post was written by Joanna Hightower and Shira Woolf Cohen, Founding Partners, Innovageous.  In March 2020, brick and mortar public charter schools were suddenly forced to operate as virtual schools.  Despite …