On average, the funding gap between charter schools and traditional schools is 22 percent, or $1,800 per pupil. The average charter school ends up with a total funding shortfall of nearly half a million dollars.
Source: Charter School Funding: Inequity’s Next Frontier
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Working Without a Safety Net: How Charter School Leaders Can Best Survive on the High Wire
Drawing from a six-state survey, this report finds, like traditional public school principals, public charter school directors often come to their positions from other jobs in education and with training from schools of education. Public charter school leaders, however, tend to be younger and newer to leadership positions; many have only a few years of experience in school administration. To meet the needs of public charter school directors, the authors call for a comprehensive pre-service and in-service training and support system. Their recommendations include: national organizations should expand public charter-specific training programs and support meaningful internships; states and cities should provide peer-mentoring opportunities that will allow new leaders to learn from the experienced; at the school level, directors should distribute certain administrative responsibilities, either with others in the school or through participation in management organizations; and public charter boards should prepare their schools to survive future leadership transitions.
Corporations, Chambers, and Charters: How Businesses Can Support High-Quality Public Charter Schools
This report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for a Competitive Workforce calls for businesses and local chambers of commerce to actively support the expansion of public charter schools to help meet the national need for a highly educated workforce. The report, "Corporations, Chambers, and Charters: How Businesses Can Support High-Quality Public Charter Schools," recommends five key actions: build a robust supply of high-quality new schools in the communities that need them; fuel the pipeline of human capital needed to operate new schools; address critical operational challenges the schools face; define and improve the quality of schools; and forge charter-friendly public policies through state and local lawmaking.
Charter Schools in SREB States: A Call for Accountability
This report compares the achievement of public charter school students with the achievement of traditional public school students in several states, as well as explores the roles of statewide data systems and state-level policies in establishing and maintaining effective public charter schools. Students in older public charter schools showed the greatest achievement gains, while some students who transitioned from traditional public schools to charters initially experienced a drop in performance. The authors recommend that state leaders ensure that their data systems can adequately gather the information they need to measure public charter school student performance, so they can use the information to guide policy decisions. They also call for quality authorizing practices to help public charter schools avoid problems after they open.
California Charter Schools Conference, March 10-12
The 16th Annual California Charter Schools Conference will be held March 10-13, 2009 at the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, California. The theme of this year's conference is "Quality Charter Schools Strengthen Communities." In addition to keynote speakers, student performances, networking events, more than 150 breakout sessions will be offered. For questions and more information about the conference, e-mail charterconf@continue.uoregon.edu or call 1-800-280-6218.
Florida Charter School Conference, Orlando (November 20-21)
The Twelfth Annual Florida Charter School Conference, hosted by the Florida Department of Education’s Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice, will take place November 20-21 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Orlando. The theme is "Charters: Providing Choice, Creating Change.”
National Association of Charter School Authorizers Annual Conference, Indianapolis, IN (October 27-28)
NACSA’s 8th Annual Conference, themed "Setting the Pace," will take place on October 27-28, 2008 at the Hyatt Regency Indianapolis. It will feature practice-oriented workshops focused on public charter school authorizing, as well as policy, research and strategy sessions.
Michigan Charter Public Schools Conference, Detroit (November 3-4)
Michigan Association of Public School Academies (MAPSA) will host the 11th annual Michigan Charter Public Schools Conference on November 3-4, 2008 at Cobo Hall in Detroit under the theme "The Call for Greatness." The two-day event is geared for educators, school board members, parents and potential public charter school founders. More than 100 speakers will cover topics for all levels through seminars, breakout sessions and table talks. Plus, vendors will be on hand to provide resources and new educational tools.
Arizona Charter Schools Conference, Carefree (November 10-11)
At its 2008 conference,“Excellence by Design,” the Arizona Charter Schools Association is hosting more than 40 educational sessions led by state and national experts tailored to the needs of public charter leaders, administrators, business managers, teachers and board members. Attendees are encouraged to join round-table discussions, build peer-to-peer networks, and share best practices. The conference features Entrepreneurial Leadership Specialist Gregg Vanourek, Director of School Leadership Development for the New York City Center for Charter School Excellence Glenn Liebeck, Rebecca Gau of the Arizona Charter Schools Association and Dr. Yvonne Chan, who has consistently pushed the limits of education for nearly 40 years as an educator, school leader, and the founder of the first conversion charter school in the nation.
National Green Charter Schools Conference, Madison, WI (November 7-9)
The Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin and the Green Charter Schools Network invite the public charter school community to learn about environment-focused public charter schools at the first national Green Charter Schools Conference on November 7-9, 2008 in Madison, Wisconsin. Conference goals include professional development for educators, opportunities for collaboration among environmental scientists and green school operators, and information on public charter school-based environmental education that supports high levels of academic achievement for all students and fosters citizenship and stewardship.
A Commitment to Quality: National Charter School Policy Forum Report
Drawing on discussions from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Innovation and Improvement National Charter School Policy Forum -- which gathered nearly 100 leaders from throughout the public charter school sector -- this report summarizes the Department's vision of the future of the public charter school movement and what needs to happen to achieve that vision. The Department envisions a public charter school sector where public charters achieve excellence early in their operations, improve their performance year in and year out, achieve consistently strong results that can expand and replicate, and where public charters strengthen all corners of public education by sharing successful practices and fostering choice and competition among schools. The vision also includes authorizers who would address chronic underperformance by closing the school and opening superior options swiftly and an improvement infrastructure that grows in its capacity to intervene in low-performing public charter schools.
1st Annual Louisiana Charter Schools Conference, New Orleans (November 15)
The LAPCS first Annual Conference, the only statewide gathering of the entire Louisiana public charter school community, will feature educational programming, networking opportunities, and exhibits. Tom Bloch, former CEO of H&R Block and charter school founder, and Brian Carpenter, a crusader for excellence in public charter school governance will be featured speakers.
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