Progress on school choice in the statehouse and courtroom during 2002 set the stage for ambitious 2003 legislative agendas in many states and the U.S. Congress. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that voucher programs do not violate the Constitution, even when participating schools are overwhelmingly religious. Research supporting choice has grown…

These are critical times for Ohio's system of educating its young people. Initiatives to reform the public schools have been gaining momentum for some time. Elected officials, organized interest groups, think tanks, and civic leaders are tugging and pulling at the system, trying to move it this way or that. But where do the people of Ohio--the…

This report traces the origins, evolution and impact of Minnesota's pioneering charter school law--on its own schools, students, and communities and on the development of charter laws in many other states. It notes that, unlike what is now happening elsewhere, new schools are now being chartered at an accelerating pace in Minnesota. And because…

This handbook provides an overview of federal and Colorado special education laws and special education issues that affect charter schools. An introduction reviews the history of charter schools and both the school choice movement and special education in Colorado. The first major section provides a history of special education statutory and case…

This document presents findings of Project SEARCH, a qualitative research study of how charter schools interpret laws and regulations governing the education of children with disabilities, especially the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The project involved a preliminary 15-state policy analysis followed by in-depth case…

This study collected information on 11 community-based organization (CBO) schools that had solid reputations for helping young people. These schools focused on youth who had been unsuccessful in mainstream schools to become engaged, challenged, and supported so they could succeed educationally and change their lives and communities. All 11 schools…

For-profit schools are serviced by commercial companies whose primary goal is to raise student achievement to a designated level within a period specified by contract. Different school systems are discussed along with their positive and negative points. Questions related to possible issues are presented in each case for consideration. Reasons for…

SABIS International Charter School was among 24 Commonwealth charter schools included in a study undertaken by the Office of the Inspector General in March 1998. The Office identified weaknesses in the contracting practices, procurement procedures, and financial management. Findings include: (1) the Board of Trustees did not employ sound business…

This document deals with the topic of the charter-school movement. Anne Turnbaugh Lockwood's article focuses on selected, key aspects of papers commissioned by the Comprehensive Center-Region VI from experts in the charter-school movement. It discusses the potential for enhanced teaching and learning in charter schools, management issues that can…

A growing number of charter schools are being designed, launched, and operated by community-based nonprofit organizations (CBOs). This resource guide is intended to target a priority technical assistance need: creating and sustaining a healthy relationship between a new charter school and a founding community organization, leading to the creation…

This case study examined the influences of autonomy and uncertain expectations of accountability on the functioning of an urban charter school during its initial years of development. The school studied was a charter school in its second year of development that was attempting to measure student improvement in challenging areas such as social…

Although all public schools could be eligible for federal funds under Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) programs, concerns have been raised about whether charter schools are receiving an equitable share of these federal funds. This report describes: (1) how federal Title I and IDEA funds are…

Research suggests that policy change can best be understood as the product of competition among advocacy coalitions within the constraints of a policy subsystem (Sabatier and Jenkins-Smith, 1993). This paper presents findings of a study that examined the rhetoric of policy change in Texas utilizing the voucher and charter-schools movements as an…

Charter schools are defined by North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI) as "a public school operated by a group of parents, teachers, and/or community members as a semi-autonomous school of choice within a school district, operating under a 'charter' with the State Board of Education." Since most charter schools do not have…

The state of Colorado has set high standards for students based on three fundamental principles: safety, civility, and literacy. How these standards were integrated into the schools is the subject of this report. It opens with an overview of the foundations of academic success and the process involved in implementing standards-based education. The…