Charter schools have become a significant part of the education sector in New York City since enabling legislation was passed in 1999. They now educate 123,000 students, or 10% of all public school students in the city, in 236 schools. The state law that allows the creation and funding of charter schools limits the number of charters that can be…

There are 22 traditional public and 14 public charter schools in Central Harlem's Community School District 5 ("CSD 5"), educating approximately 9,200 students in grades 3 to 8, of whom 94% are Black or Hispanic and 84% economically disadvantaged. School results on 2019 statewide tests ranged from 99.8 % down to only 8.3% at grade level…

This report examines and explains the most recent achievement results for New York City and New York State students in district and charter schools, and to put New York City's achievement levels in context. The New York City public school system is the largest in the country, with more than 1 million students in grades prekindergarten through 12…

New York State's system of public elementary and secondary schools is in steep decline, but it is salvageable. The roots of its problems pre-date the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, but the system's response to that challenge accelerated discontent with the schools and harmed students. The damage of those years will not be undone if…

A particularly controversial topic in current education policy is the expansion of the charter school sector. This paper analyzes the spillover effects of charter schools on traditional public school (TPS) students in New York City. I exploit variation in both the timing of charter school entry and distance to the nearest charter school to obtain…

Charter schools represent an increasingly important form of school choice in the United States. Charter schools are public schools, with a difference. Compared to traditional public schools, they are exempted from some of the state laws and regulations that govern traditional public schools. In this way, parents come to have a greater number of…

U.S. social programs, set up to address important problems, often fall short by funding specific models/strategies ("interventions") that are not effective. When evaluated in scientifically-rigorous studies, social interventions in K-12 education, job training, crime prevention, and other areas are frequently found ineffective or…