NACSA Blog

NACSA Blog

Press Releases


Indiana Receives Top Marks in Charter School Policy Report, Leads Nation with Smart Laws Focused on Quality and Oversight

For the first time, Indiana’s strong charter school laws earned a perfect score in a national ranking of charter school policies out today from the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA). …

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Arizona Charter School Reforms Recognized in National Charter School Policy Analysis

New accountability and oversight provisions demonstrate state’s shift to quality charter schools Strong charter school provisions enacted by the Arizona legislature last year lead to huge gains on a national ranking of …

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New Connecticut Charter School Reforms Recognized in National Charter School Policy Analysis

New accountability and oversight provisions bring Connecticut’s charter school law up-to-date Strong charter school oversight provisions enacted by the Connecticut legislature last year lead to huge gains on a national ranking of …

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Georgia Charter School Reforms Lauded in National Charter School Policy Analysis

Report lauds Georgia’s reforms to strengthen charter school oversight and encourages adoption of additional recommendations being put forth by the Georgia Education Reform Commission Strong charter school oversight provisions enacted by the …

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NACSA President Calls on US Senate to Support the Every Student Succeeds Act

Tomorrow, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) will come before the US Senate for a floor vote.  The current legislative proposal, which is a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act …


School Reopenings: One Authorizer Focuses on Student Safety in Reopening Plans

This is a guest blog post by Scott Pearson, former Executive Director of the DC Public Charter School Board and NACSA Board Member. Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic has required urgent and …


Moving Beyond “Accountability” in Monitoring a Virtual Learning Environment

This is a guest post by Laura Stabler, Director of Academic Performance and Accountability at CMU’s Governor John Engler Center for Charter Schools.  Do you ever feel like Alice from the literary classic Alice’s Adventures …


Missouri’s Charter School Authorizer Oversight: Not Pretty, But It’s Working

The headline of a recent story covering the Missouri State Board of Education could, on first read, be seen as a knock on charter school authorizing. After all, when state officials threaten sanctions or even revocation …


NACSA Statement on School Reopenings

Any school opening plan must include state and local health guidelines and be driven by two cornerstones: the health and safety of students and staff, and continuous learning for students. We know …


Authorizer Conversations: Dr. Kelli Peterson Addresses Racism and Injustice in Education in America

    Dr. Kelli Peterson, NACSA National Advisory Board Member and new Assistant Superintendent, Equity, Inclusion and Opportunity at the Louisiana Department of Education, addresses racism, inequity, and injustice in America and …


The Paycheck Protection Program: What is an Authorizer’s Role?

As you may know, part of the federal stimulus packages that were passed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic is a federal loan program: The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). This program provides …


Authorizer Conversations: Peng Chao on Balancing “Meaningful Support” and Autonomy

In the next installment of Authorizer Conversations, NACSA’s interim VP of Policy, Veronica Brooks-Uy interviews Peng Chao, Executive Director of the Charter Schools Office at the School District of Philadelphia. Peng shares …


Charter School Authorizers Must Rebalance Accountability, Flexibility, and Support During the Pandemic

This guest blog was written by Miho Kubagawa, a Partner with New Schools Venture Fund. When schools closed in March, I naively assumed that the biggest challenge public schools would face this …


Message to the Charter School Authorizing Community from Karega Rausch, Interim President & CEO

To the Authorizing Community: Like so many of you it has taken me some time to process a range of emotions after seeing Black people being murdered, most visibly George Floyd and …


Authorizer Conversations: Joseph Escobedo on Virtual Site Visits and the Human Side of Authorizing

“When we talk about the human side, that was something I was not expecting. I was not expecting that I would need to provide emotional support to our charter leaders or that …