What Makes Charter Schools Work? Part 2

 Last time we talked about the need to allow for both conversion and start-up public charter schools. The very notion of conversion charter schools evokes the image of a failing school that is being converted. These schools, and the student populations in these areas, are in the most dire need of an alternative to the current system. So, for these conversions, and for start-ups as well:

2) We should give preference to charter applicants in areas with low-performing schools.

While the benefits of educational choice should be available to all, granting preference to these charter schools will serve two purposes.

First, it will help to close the achievement gaps that we see across the state of Kentucky. Our poorest performing districts correlate to many of our most impoverished districts, and working to even the playing field for educational opportunity will benefit all of Kentucky.

Second, where schools are performing poorly, the benefits of charter schools will be seen most clearly. These successes will help to erase any doubts about the benefits of innovation in the public educational environment, and will help the growth of an array of educational options for parents throughout Kentucky.

We should certainly encourage the development of charter schools throughout the state, but serving those with the greatest need first has always been at the core of the public charter school movement.