The Kauffman School is a public, tuition-free charter school serving Kansas City students. In the 2019-20 school year, the school enrolled 1,186 students in grades 5 through 12. Most (88 percent) of the students were low income, and 89 percent were Black or Hispanic. To measure the impact of the Kauffman School on its students, the authors…

Purpose is an important aspect of character development and thriving in adolescence; yet, there is little research explaining how it develops or how contexts such as school can support its development. In this study, 1,304 eighth graders completed a survey that measured purpose as the integration of 2 dimensions-- beyond-the-self life goal…

School-based programs designed to reduce problem behaviors, increase prosocial behaviors, and improve academic achievement have often been characterized as social-emotional learning or character development (education) programs. This longitudinal study investigated effects of such a program, called "Second Step", on observed problem…

This study focused on a lately constructed survey instrument that was intended to test the family perspective on a home visiting program and school. The four areas investigated were parent-teacher communications, student-teacher interactions, the parent's perception of the school and the parents' understanding of the home visiting program. The…

This study explores the characteristics of after-school program activities at a charter school in the Southeast US highlighting students' experiences with and gains from these after-school program activities. A qualitative case study design was employed to understand students' views and opinions regarding the activities and their learning…

With the global crises facing the planet that bring major implications, (Hart & Nolan, 1999; Hungerford & Simmons, 2003) it is imperative that there be an environmentally literate citizenry who can identify, solve, and prevent environmental issues. Since middle school students are evolving into participating citizens and are developing the…

The first U.S. charter school opened in 1992, and the scale of the charter movement has since grown to 4,000 schools and more than a million students in 40 states plus the District of Columbia. With this growth has also come a contentious debate about the effects of the schools on their own students and on students in nearby traditional public…