School Choice the Old-Fashioned Way
“When Ann and Jonathan Binstock started shopping for an apartment in Manhattan in 2007, their first call was not to a real estate broker. Instead, they hired an education consultant, to show them where the best schools for their daughter, Ellen, were. After the consultant suggested the most desirable zones, they chose a two-bedroom apartment […]
Grand Opening
School leaders and board members from the 27 new charter schools opening in NYC this fall attended a welcome celebration at the Tweed Courthouse on June 23. This is always a proud moment for the Charter Center because we’ve worked with so many of the teams from the very beginning. This year’s group is a […]
Yogi Berra Hits It Out of the Park at BCSC!
Yogi Berra stopped by Bronx Charter School for Children in the South Bronx Thursday afternoon.† The baseball legend met with a small group of students and staff at the high performing K-5 school located less than a mile from Yankee Stadium. The school’s executive director Karen Drezner told me, “The visit was really special because […]
The Reviews Are In
We packed the house in Brooklyn last night for the Charter Center’s screening of “The Lottery”.† More than 200 peopleó charter school educators, parents, and some interested citizensó watched the film with us. Here are a few reviews: ”It’s revolutionary because there’s no film like it out there. All educators should see it whether they […]
A Milestone
New York State’s Race to the Top application was delivered to USDOE officials in Washington today, fresh off the Legislature’s passage of a cap lift bill that makes a host of amendments to the state Charter Schools Law.†With a few days of holiday rest and reflection between Friday’s frenzy and today, I still think it’s […]
Paranoia Will Destroy Ya
The other day I pointed out that NYSUT’s righteous concern for ELL education is harder to awaken in the absence of an anti-charter angle. I cited the example of the ELL crisis in the Buffalo City School District. I never mentioned the UFT, but the city union replied anyway.†Leo Casey says the UFT cannot “reasonably […]
What the Charter Bill Does (Pt. 4): Helping English Language Learners
This is the fourth post about what’s actually in the much-discussed New York State charter schools bill (S.7678/A.10928). Read about the raising the cap in Pt. 1, improving transparency in Pt. 2, and providing special education in Pt. 3. As momentum builds for, as supporter Bill Clinton put it, “lifting the lid” on charter school […]
“Awesome” Video of Duncan’s Visit
I had the privilege of joining Education Secretary Arne Duncan this afternoon during a visit to Kings Collegiate Charter School. It’s a terrific school in Brownsville, Brooklyn that, as the Secretary pointed out, is one of the best middle schools in the state. He asked a class of fifth graders what makes their school so […]
Waiting for a Cap Lift: Outward Bound
Who wants to open new charter schools, anyway? Not who you might think from the anti-charter rhetoric. This week the Charter Center is profiling prospective charter schools, just a few of the dozens of school planning teams hoping not to be shut out by the impending cap on charter schools. Today: Launch Expeditionary Learning (Prospective) […]
Another Must-Read from Steven Brill
NYC charter schools? Race to the Top? Retrograde unions? In the New York Times Magazine, Steven Brill explains it all. As in his devastating and influential piece on rubber rooms, Brill lays out the facts and puts the defenders of the status quo on the spot. Here’s hoping this article has a similar effect on […]
