Growing Pains: Scaling Up the Nation's Best Charter Schools

This Education Sector report takes an objective look at how prepared the nation's best charter schools are to meet the challenge of rapid expansion.

Plotting School Choice

Allowing students in low-performing schools to attend better schools in other districts seems like a winning strategy. Interdistrict choice, many argue, will give students more options and a greater chance to achieve. But there are a number of factors that limit the potential of interdistrict choice, cautions Policy Analyst Erin Dillon in this new Education Sector report.

ES Review: Selections From 2007

From the promise of virtual schooling to the plight of Sallie Mae, the second edition of the ES Review brings together, in one setting, some of our best work from 2007.

A Sum Greater Than the Parts: What States Can Teach Each Other About Charter Schooling

States with a significant charter sector know firsthand that the success or failure of a charter school is not a matter of chance, but subject to variances in state laws and a state's educational, political, and regulatory climate. In this report, Sara Mead and Andrew J. Rotherham draw on the experiences of 12 states, proposing those lessons that are necessary for charter school quality and growth.

Information Underload: Florida's Flawed Special-Ed Voucher Program

Despite its growing popularity and the extensive attention it has received from both state and national education reformers, Florida's McKay voucher program has yet to prove that it works as either an adequate school-choice or special-education reform measure.

Laboratories of Reform: Virtual High Schools and Innovation in Public Education

Virtual schools are growing rapidly, serving over 700,000 students in the 2005–06 school year. But these schools are proving to be more than just another delivery system for students; they are bringing about reforms that have long eluded traditional public schools.

Eight for 2008: Education Ideas for the Next President

Education Sector offers eight education ideas for our next president. These are pragmatic solutions to real problems that both parties can support.

The Future of Charter Schools and Teachers Unions: Results of a Symposium

Over the past fifteen years, charter schools and teachers unions have battled in state legislatures, the courts, and the media. This new report provides recommendations for how both groups might coexist while maintaining their most valued principles.

Maintenance Required: Charter Schooling in Michigan

Michigan's charter sector has tremendous potential, but achieving that potential requires significant improvements.

L.A. Story: Can a Parent Revolution Change Urban Education's Power Structure?

In 1990 Steve Barr "rocked the vote" in America by helping to engineer an upswing in voting among 18-to 24-year-olds with the help of musicians and other pop culture icons. Now the political operative and education entrepreneur is tapping into the frustrations of working-class parents in Los Angeles to rock the city's public schools to their core.

Florida Charter Schools: Hot and Humid with Passing Storms

Hot and Humid examines the history of Florida's charter school initiative, results to date, and areas where the state can improve.

The Pros and Cons of Charter School Closures

This chapter from the Center on Reinventing Public Education's A Balanced Look at American Charter Schools in 2005 reviews the implications of charter school closures, both good and bad, and makes recommendations for improving authorizer quality. 

Capital Campaign: Early Returns on Charter Schooling in the District of Columbia

The District of Columbia's charter movement is one of the nation's largest and most significant, yet it still faces challenges that policymakers and educators must address in order to fulfill their promise and truly become a national model of exemplary charter schooling.

Developing a Public Agenda for Virtual Learning

Virtual learning continues to experience explosive growth. It has great potential to help address many of our nation's most pressing educational issues, argues Bill Tucker.

Tough Luck

Education Sector's Chad Aldeman and Erin Dillon review the film "The Lottery." The film delivers important lessons about expanding choice in public education.

Designing Smart Charter School Caps

In an article for The Journal of School Choice, Erin Dillon examines two states that have implemented quality-sensitive charter school caps and draws lessons for policymakers in implementing "smart charter caps."

Building on Massachusetts Charter Schools' Success

In the Sunday edition of the Providence Journal, Co-founder Andrew Rotherham argues Massachusetts has a real opportunity to fully integrate public charter schools into the fabric of the commonwealth's education system.

Education Legacy: Schools Must Improve Under McDonnell

In an opinion piece for the Richmond-Times Dispatch, Education Sector's Andrew Rotherham argues that among the many challenges Governor-elect Bob McDonnell will face in Virginia, education reform is a key place where McDonnell could make meaningful change happen.

Matchmaking: Enabling Mandatory Public School Choice in New York and Boston

In this new Education Sector Idea at Work, Co-founder Thomas Toch and Policy Analyst Chad Aldeman take a close look at two districts that are implementing school choice on an unprecedented scale and achieving impressive results.

Educating Urban America

In The Wilson Quarterly, Education Sector's Thomas Toch reviews three new books that highlight the innovations and challenges of urban education reform.

Dear President-Elect Obama

In a commentary for National Public Radio, Co-director Andrew Rotherham says the next president will have two important tools at his disposal to be successful on education: the power of the podium and the power of the purse.

In Need of Improvement: Revising NCLB's School Choice Provision

In this new Education Sector Idea at Work, Policy Analyst Erin Dillon offers lawmakers a number of steps they can take to improve NCLB's school choice provision and increase the number of high-quality public school options for students in low-performing schools.

Lost in Transit

Without significant changes, the Massachusetts interdistrict school choice program, and others like it, offer little potential to substantially help low-income students, argues Policy Analyst Erin Dillon.

Super-Special Ed

Co-director Thomas Toch writes about former Edison Schools CEO Chris Whittle's new educational endeavors for New York Magazine.

More than Choice in The District

In the Washington Post, Andrew J. Rotherham and Lisa Guido, a high school history teacher, discuss what some local students have to say about the differences between traditional public schools and D.C. charter schools and why eliminating some of those differences is a problem facing the entire school system.

A Defining Moment for Charter Schools?

In Education Week, Andrew J. Rotherham and Richard Whitmire explain how cooperation among some of the most successful charter networks has the potential to revolutionize the charter school movement and reshape urban education.

The Translators: The Media and School Choice Research

What the public knows about educational research comes primarily from the media. But, as Co-director Andrew Rotherham points out in Phi Delta Kappan, few reporters have the training to judge the quality or significance of studies, and the tendency is to emphasize controversy rather than solid findings.

Scrap NCLB? No

In Reason Roundtable, Education Sector's Erin Dillon makes the case for reforming NCLB to encourage competition and build the supply of high-quality schools.

Three Tensions in Education Reform

Education Sector Co-director Thomas Toch speaks to state policymakers about contemporary issues in education reform at a recent Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation event.

Smart Charter School Caps

By primarily focusing on quantity, charter school caps do not always address the greater concern of quality. Education Sector Co-director Andrew J. Rotherham offers an innovative solution to managing both the growth and quality of charter schools.

Steal This Education Agenda

In The Politico, Andrew J. Rotherham and Richard Whitmire give presidential candidates reasons to care about education.

A New Deal for Urban Public Schools

Andrew Rotherham and Sara Mead outline a "New Deal" for urban education in the Harvard Law and Policy Review.

Get Mayors in the Schooling Game

Andrew Rotherham and David Harris write about the potential of mayoral charter authorizing.

School Governance Reform: Seven Deadly Sins to Avoid

As D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and the city council consider reforming school governance in the District, they should avoid these seven deadly sins.

Extreme Makeover: Two Failing San Diego Schools Get New Start as Charters

Two schools, required to restructure under NCLB after years of failure, have converted to charter schools, putting them on the cutting edge of school reform. Education Sector Co-director Thomas Toch and Nonresident Senior Fellow Joe Williams report.

Easy Way Out:
"Restructured" Usually Means Little Has Changed

In the Winter 2007 issue of Education Next, Education Sector's Sara Mead looks at how states and school districts are dealing with schools in restructuring under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

Big Box: How the Heirs of the Wal-Mart Fortune Have Fueled the Charter School Movement

The charter school movement has grown from a single school in St. Paul, Minn., in 1992 to more than 4,000 schools educating nearly a million students in 40 states and the District of Columbia. The founding family of Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, has played a key role in the movement's expansion.

Inside the School Choice Crusade

Lawrence Patrick III is at the forefront of the school choice movement as the president of the nonprofit Black Alliance for Educational Options. He spoke recently with Education Sector Co-director Thomas Toch about BAEO's work and the state of the school-choice movement.

Core Convictions

E.D. Hirsch, Jr., one of the most well-known figures in the culture wars debate, discusses his 2006 book The Knowledge Deficit, the links between his work in education and his literary scholarship, school choice, standards, and the politics of education.

Liberal Reforms: A Conversation with Eva Moskowitz

Eva Moskowitz roiled New York City's educational landscape for six years from her seat on the council's education committee, lost her bid for Manhattan Borough President, and is about to launch a charter school in Harlem. She discusses with Thomas Toch her insights into big city school systems, why she broke ranks with Democrats on public education, and more.

Market Forces: Professor Paul Peterson's Influential Protégés

Harvard professor Paul E. Peterson is best known in education circles as a leading advocate of giving public school students government-funded tuition vouchers to attend private schools. Less well known is his role in training an influential group of young, market-oriented education scholars.

Virtual Schools, Real Innovation

In The New York Times, co-director Andrew Rotherham argues that maintaining, and even broadening, support for public schools means embracing more diversity in how we provide public education and who provides it.

Old Policies, New Ways to Fund Preschool

State policymakers can use state school finance systems and charter school policies to expand access to high-quality preschool.

Learning on the Job

Rather than adding to the ideological fire, a new book by Steven Wilson examines the actual experiences of school-management organizations.

"Education Should Be a Rich Symphony"

The late Ted Sizer was one of American education's most influential thinkers. In 2006, Education Sector's Andrew Rotherham got a chance to sit down with Sizer to discuss school reform, instruction and curriculum, the standards movement, No Child Left Behind, school choice, high school reform, higher education, and what he considered to be his unfinished work.

Restrictive Uniforms

Even opponents of school vouchers should be wary of the recent decision by Florida's Supreme Court overturning the state's school choice program.

Checklist for Charter Schools

The District is home to some of the nation's best-performing charters, however too many other charters are not delivering on their promise. District leaders must take steps to improve the quality of their charter schools and expand educational opportunities for all children in the District.

Hollow Victory for Voucher Foes

Florida's Supreme Court decision to overturn the state's private school voucher program drew cheers from opponents and jeers from voucher supporters. Yet for supporters of public education, the court's ruling is a hollow victory, not a cause for celebration.

Erin Dillon

Senior Policy Analyst

Michael Goldstein

Founder and CEO, MATCH School

Bryan C. Hassel

Co-director, Public Impact  

John King

Co-founder, Roxbury Preparatory Charter School

Robin J. Lake

Associate Director, Center on Reinventing Public Education, Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs, University of Washington  

Steven Wilson

Non-resident Senior Fellow, Center for Business and Government, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University