Betsy DeVos, the new U.S. Secretary of Education, has a reform agenda to advance school choice. Her track record includes enabling charter school growth in Michigan at taxpayers' expense with little oversight or accountability. Although an effective advocate, DeVos represents a broader policy movement to privatize American education, much of it…

In compliance with the Indian Education Act (NMSA1976 Section 22), the purpose of this Tribal Education Status Report (TESR) is to inform stakeholders of the New Mexico Public Education Department's (NMPED) and Local Education Agency's (LEAs) current initiatives specific to American Indian (AI) students and their educational progress. This report…

Key findings from the current survey: (1) Most Californians say charter schools are an important option for parents in low-income areas--but many express concern that charters divert funding from traditional public schools; (2) More than half of residents across regions say teacher salaries in their community are too low; and (3) Majorities…

Many state education leaders are taking a fresh look at their school finance formulas in hopes of finding ways to contain costs and get more for their dollar. That is an understandable response given that education is the largest item on most state budgets. This paper examines how current funding practices lead to inefficiencies, particularly…

In the past several decades, Boston has been a proving ground for new strategies such as mayoral control, charter schools, and expanded access to early childhood education. Located in a state known for rigorous standards and accountability, Boston Public Schools (BPS) has consistently ranked among the top-performing large public school districts…

In 2012, the School District of Philadelphia closed six schools. In 2013, it closed 24. The closure of 30 schools has occurred amid a financial crisis, headlined by the district's $1.35 billion deficit. School closures are one piece of the district's plan to cut expenditures and close its budget gap. The closures are also intended to make…

As in past years, this report draws from a survey of Grantmakers for Education membership that provides a snapshot of giving patterns as well as grantmakers' qualitative impressions of lessons and insights from their work. For the first time, this report has sought out the perspectives of non-members who are active in the field, to help broaden…

This second edition policy brief revisits the long and storied literature on whether money matters in providing a quality education. It includes research released since the original brief in 2012 and covers a handful of additional topics. Increasingly, political rhetoric adheres to the unfounded certainty that money does not make a difference in…

The author has spent a large part of his adult life criticizing the flawed institutions and policies of public education as a teacher, an education activist, and a policy advocate. But these days he finds himself spending a lot of time defending the very idea of public education against those who say, sometimes literally, it should be blown up.…

Today one of the most notable school reform efforts is that of providing school choice options to families. An aim of this reform effort is to create market driven changes in the performance of traditional public schools. Of all school choice options, charter schools have emerged as an influential educational choice. As public schools, charter…

In this essay, Charles Payne and Tim Knowles argue that given President Obama's support of charter schools, it is time for educators and policymakers to closely consider both the possibilities and the limitations of these schools in the context of urban school reform. The authors discuss the unique flexibility of charter schools--namely in…