When 16 finalists come to Washington next week to make their final pitches in the $4 billion Race to the Top competition, most can expect to go home empty-handed. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, in announcing the finalists last week, said that no more than $2 billion will be divided among "very few winners" when the awards are…

President Barack Obama and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan have been championing charter schools for months, creating what some advocates believe is the most forceful national momentum to expand the largely independent public schools since the first charter opened nearly 20 years ago. That high-profile advocacy is being matched, moreover,…

In the final sprint to polish Race to the Top applications, hundreds of school districts shunned a shot at a share of $4 billion in grants by refusing to sign on to their states' plans for the federal competition. California officials had secured the signatures of 790 local education agencies (leas) late last week, including most of the state's…

A year ago, Arne Duncan was known as a long-serving urban district chief who had used his collegial management style to push innovation and close failing schools in Chicago. This week, he enters his second year as U.S. secretary of education pursuing a similar national policy agenda that could place him among the most influential leaders in his…

President Barack Obama's proposed $49.7 billion budget for the U.S. Department of Education is more than just a spending blueprint: Department officials portray it as a fundamental reimagining of the agency's structure and management. Under the fiscal 2011 proposal unveiled last week, a roster of 38 relatively small, targeted grant programs would…

States jockey for position as the U.S. Education Department readies billions of dollars in "Race to the Top" awards--the stimulus program's grand prize. Even before they've finished spending their first block of federal stimulus aid, states are getting a head start in a national "race to the top" for better public education,…

The world of charter school facilities is sometimes strange. Many charter operators have had to show considerable creativity and resourcefulness in finding a place to educate their students, whether it's a former K-Mart or car dealership, a church facility, or space in an office complex. Obtaining and paying for adequate facilities are often big…

Through order and English immersion, a network of charter schools strives to turn Latino students into informed citizens and leaders inside and outside the community. Chicago-based United Neighborhood Organization, or UNO, is a Latino advocacy group with a history of community organizing. The group recently received a $98 million grant from the…

This article describes opinions about what ails U.S. schools. The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation has a lot to say about education in the United States--what's wrong with it and how to fix it. A national authority on charters and an unabashed champion of the idea, the Fordham Foundation is getting a grounding in reality and appears to be the only…

The state of Ohio wants to take charter schools to a whole new level: colleges of education. The state department of education is seeking to establish teacher-preparation schools that are free from state regulations so long as they produce high-quality teachers--a variation on the concept that has led to the creation of more than 3,000 K-12…