In Memoriam
Friday, February 15, 2019
Last week, one of the founders of the New York City Charter School Center, Carol Reich, passed away. You can read the outline of Carol’s life and contributions in the New York Times’ obituary
Charters Close the Achievement Gap: NYC Charters Continue to Lead
Sunday, September 30, 2018
On Wednesday, the New York State Education Department released results for the 2017-18 grades 3-8 English Language Arts (ELA) and math assessments. As in 2015-16, when the state implemented new testing procedures that differed from past years’ Common Core assessments, these results are not directly comparable to those from the year prior.
What Does Inclusion Look Like?
Wednesday, February 7, 2018
By Melissa Katz, Director, English Learner Supports
The NYC Special Education Collaborative’s mission is to empower schools to develop inclusive education environments. This is an ambitious undertaking given that inclusion is not a teaching strategy, but rather a mindset. In the most basic language, inclusion means any student...
Charters Widen the Gap: NYC Charters Continue to Lead
Thursday, August 24, 2017
On Tuesday, the New York State Education Department released results for the 2016-17 grades 3-8 English Language Arts (ELA) and math assessments. Unlike 2015-16, when the state implemented new testing procedures that differed from past years’ Common Core assessments, the 2016-17 results are directly comparable to those from the year prior. Across New York City, both charter and traditional district schools made improvements in ELA and math. However, following last year’s trends, New York City charter schools outperformed and outgained traditional district schools in both ELA and math.
Charters Are Still Not "Creaming" Students
Monday, April 3, 2017
By Michael Pih, Associate Director of Policy & Research
Despite significant evidence to the contrary, it’s a common refrain among charter school critics that the strong academic performance of NYC charter schools can be explained by their selective enrollment of students based on certain characteristics, including prior academic performance...
The Best Case for Returning to the Funding Formula
Tuesday, March 21, 2017
By Michael Pih
And the funding gap between charters and the district continues to grow...
The IBO released an updated report comparing public spending for charter schools to traditional district schools, and its analysis is clear: not only do NYC charter schools receive less in public spending than their district counterparts, but this funding disparity continues to grow.
Giving Voice: Special Populations Series
Friday, January 6, 2017
By Dixon Deutsch, Vice President of Special Populations
Accountability: College Football vs. Public Schools
While enjoying the holidays in my home state of Texas, I received an email from my alma mater - the University of Texas at Austin. The email caught my eye because it referenced a new head coach for the university football team. For those that don't know, college football is big in Texas. So big in fact, that when a relatively new head coach didn't perform after three years, the university let him go. This isn't surprising, considering that the football program is a multi-million dollar endeavor. What is surprising is the very public nature and the reasons that the university gave for firing the head coach.
Giving Voice: Special Populations Series
Tuesday, December 6, 2016
By Megan Davis-Hitchens, Director of the NYC Special Education Collaborative
When we say, “We do inclusion,” what do we mean?
In my third year attending CHIME Charter School’s Creating Inclusive Schools conference, I continue to experience shifts in my conceptualization of inclusion. By observing and learning directly from the teachers and school leaders at CHIME, it becomes clear that behind their inclusive systems are highly passionate and committed educators - educators who believe, whole-heartedly, that all students can be successful and truly belong in their school community. They continuously adapt, modify, shift, and learn, in order to ensure that all students are included.
Giving Voice: Special Populations Series
Thursday, November 3, 2016
By Melissa Katz
Inclusion: We Must Get There
It’s 6:00pm on a Saturday and I’m sitting on a flight back to New York after three days of intensive professional development about inclusion. As the Charter Center’s Program Manager of English Learner Supports, I’m constantly on the lookout for the best educational practices around recruiting and supporting English language learners. This trip took me to CHIME, a well-known and successful charter school in Los Angeles that started as a Pre-K for students with moderate to severe disabilities. Eventually, their successes and parent demand skyrocketed and the school grew to serve Kindergarten through 8th grade with plans to expand to high school.
Major Gains Seen in Achievement of Charter School Children in 2015-16 Test Scores
Wednesday, August 3, 2016
By Michael Pih
In what can be described as yet another transition year for New York State testing, NYC charter schools made significant gains, and outperformed their district counterparts in both ELA and Math. As the sector has done for the past three years, math proficiency continues to exceed district averages—this year by +12.3 percentage points (48.7% vs. 36.4%). Most encouraging is the fact that charters outperformed the district in ELA for the first time since the transition to the Common Core assessments in the 2012-13 school year (43.0% vs. 38.0%).