Ohio has a long history of school funding inequity. This manuscript provides a brief history of Ohio education funding, the equity and adequacy concerns. Education reform efforts have been expanding while the appropriate management of the funding mechanism has been underfunded or entirely ignored. The researcher examines the negative impact of…

This paper builds upon prior research attempting to answer the question "Does money matter?" in public education by offering some insight into the potential advantages of charter schools over their district counterparts. In order to develop an accurate model of the true relationship between resources and performance, Adkins and Moomaw…

In our 2019 annual report, we provide insight into our sponsorship work during the year and the performance of our sponsored schools. We are also pleased to highlight the good work of our colleagues on Fordham's policy and research teams. Our schools' academic performance shows several schools doing very well on Ohio's value added (growth) measure…

The 2017-18 school year saw our sponsorship portfolio grow from 4,100 students in 2016-17 to 4,800 students across five Ohio cities: Dayton, Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Portsmouth. We're also honored to have been recognized by the National Association for Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) as part of NACSA's Quality Practice Project.…

School choice is increasingly the new normal in urban education. But in cities with multiple public school options, how can civic leaders create a choice system that works for all families, whether they choose a charter or district public school? To answer this question, the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) researchers surveyed 4,000…

The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation's sponsorship annual report highlights our work with eleven schools that served 4,150 students in five Ohio cities during the 2016-17 school year. We value this opportunity to keep stakeholders and the public informed about our efforts, and provide information on each of the schools that we sponsor. Additionally,…

The 2015-16 school year was one of transition in Ohio. New state assessments (again), new charter sponsor evaluations, and even a new state superintendent. Change is hard, but it is important to remember that the developments of the last twelve months have their roots in policy decisions designed to improve Ohio's academic standards overall and…

The 2015 Fordham Sponsorship Annual Report is our opportunity to share the Fordham Foundation's work as the sponsor of eleven schools serving approximately 3,200 students in five cities, and our related policy work in Ohio and nationally. Charter school policy took a giant leap forward in Ohio in 2015 with the passage of HB 2. The road to a…

Is it time for Ohio to take bolder steps toward turning around its most troubled schools and districts? If so, what might the alternatives look like? Options for rebooting these troubled schools have come in the form of mayoral control, state takeovers, market competition through charter schools and other choice programs, as well as millions of…

There are a number of critical tests ahead for the charter school sector. This volume of "Hopes, Fears, & Reality" explores these issues. In chapter 1, Jon Christensen, Jacqueline Meijer-Irons, and Robin J. Lake lay out the basic data on charter school growth in the last several years. They examine the growth and character of the…

With the release of Ohio's state test score data each August, one recurring question is how well have the state's large sector of charter schools performed relative to their counterparts in traditional districts? The Thomas B. Fordham Institute commissioned Public Impact to conduct an analysis of the 2009-10 data in this report. Using public…

"Keeping the Promise?" examines one of the most complex reforms in education: charter schools. This wide-ranging and thought-provoking collection of essays examines the charter school movement's founding visions, on-the-ground realities, and untapped potential-within the context of an unswerving commitment to democratic, equitable public…

This study evaluates how welcoming thirty American cities--the twenty-five largest and five smaller "hotspots"--are to "nontraditional" problem-solvers and solutions. It assumes that the balky bureaucracies meant to improve K-12 education and hold leaders accountable are so calcified by policies, programs, contracts, and…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) Lessons from the Frontlines of the Charter…

Collaborations popping up across the country between charter and traditional public schools show promise that charter schools could fulfill their original purpose of becoming research-and-development hothouses for public education, champions of charters say. But both supporters and skeptics of charter schools agree that so far the cooperative…