In Philadelphia, if a student chooses not to attend their neighborhood school, other options include schools with specialized programming in the arts, sciences, or business fields, schools with career and technical education options, and competitive magnet schools. But choosing an out-of-catchment school rather than a neighborhood school may…

As public schools, charter schools have an obligation to serve students with disabilities (SWD); as self-governing, mission-oriented, and nimble schools, charter schools have a corresponding opportunity to provide innovative, student-centered opportunities to meet those obligations. This compilation from the National Charter School Resource Center…

Through powerful narratives of parents of Black and Latinx students with disabilities, this book provides a unique look at the relationship between disability, race, urban space, and market-driven educational policies. Offering significant insights into complex forms of educational exclusion, the text illustrates the actual challenges and…

In statehouses, school boards, and communities across the US, battles are raging over the direction of education policy--from the standards that are shaping what students learn to how test results are being used to judge a teacher's performance. These battles are being waged against a backdrop of shifting demographics, rapidly developing…

As public schools, charter schools have an obligation to serve English Leaners (EL); as self-governing, mission-oriented, and nimble schools, charter schools have a corresponding opportunity to provide innovative, student-centered opportunities to meet those obligations. This compilation from the National Charter School Resource Center (NCSRC) is…

For the past 12 years, the Cowen Institute has published the "State of Public Education in New Orleans" ("SPENO") on a near annual basis. During that time, the purpose, content, and audience of the report have evolved. This edition of the report is a snapshot of public education in the current academic year using aggregated…

The purpose of this fact sheet is to make this information easily available to policymakers, activists, and parents/caregivers, and to contribute to a substantive discussion about developing equitable educational opportunities for all children.

The charter sector has grown dramatically since its beginnings in Minnesota almost a quarter of a century ago. Today, an estimated 2.5 million children attend approximately 6,400 charter schools across the country, and all but 8 states have charter laws in place. The expansion of the sector has been accompanied by an increase in public commentary…

Throughout much of the nation, parents have a clear-cut choice of where to educate their children--in a public school, at taxpayer expense, or in a private school, at the family's expense. In Milwaukee and some other cities, however, that line is not so clear; students can attend public schools operated by private organizations and private schools…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Alliance President Bob Wise Named to "Nonprofit Times'" Top 50 Most Influential Executives; (2) Sound and…

Eva Moskowitz (the founder and CEO of the Success Charter Network in Harlem) and Arin Lavinia offer practical, classroom-tested ideas for dramatically improving teaching and learning. Moskowitz and Lavinia reveal how a charter school in the middle of Harlem, enrolling neighborhood children selected at random, emerged as one of the top schools in…

For decades, for-profit educational provision has been merely tolerated, often grudgingly. In the world of charter schooling, for-profit providers are lambasted and sometimes prohibited. In higher education, for-profit institutions have grown rapidly, enrolling millions of nontraditional students and earning enmity, suspicion, and now…

This important book provides African American parents with the knowledge to diversify K-12 school choices beyond traditional neighborhood public schools in order to optimize the educational chances of their own children, and it will help educators and policymakers to close the black-white academic achievement gap throughout America. In November…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Wave Goodbye to Waivers?: Key House Republicans Challenge Duncan's Plan to Grant Waivers to NCLB Requirements; (2)…

Alaska's Department of Education & Early Development shares a vision that all students can succeed in their education and work, shape meaningful lives for themselves, exemplify the best values of society, and be effective in improving the character and quality of the world about them. To support this mission, the Alaska State Board of…