Texas education commissioner Felipe Alanis has ordered five charter schools in the Lone Star State (including two in Houston) to close by the end of the school year because they have failed for three years in a row to meet state standards. The closures would be the first to occur for purely academic reasons since the legislature authorized charters in 1995. We call this a belated sign of a healthy accountability system. "State to shut 2 other local charter schools," by Rad Sallee and Melanie Markley, Houston Chronicle, November 7, 2002
