National expert praises progress in Ohio charter sector
Greg Richmond, the chief executive officer of the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA), wrote an op-ed that appeared in the Columbus Dispatch this week. Richmond notes that the “sun is setting on the ‘Wild, Wild West,’” a phrase that NACSA once used to refer to Ohio’s charter school sector. He explains that charter-schooling in Ohio is headed in the right direction, as Ohio has increased transparency, eliminated conflicts of interest, strengthened charter governing boards, and improved its oversight of sponsors.
New report from CREDO on Ohio charter school performance
Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO), the nation’s foremost independent evaluator of charter-school performance, will be in Columbus on February 19 to unveil a brand new analysis of Ohio's charter sector performance from 2013-14 through 2016-17. CREDO director Margaret (Macke) Raymond, Ph.D. and lead analyst Chunping Han will present their findings. You can register for the event, which will be held at the DoubleTree Suites Hotel in Columbus from 8:30 - 10:00 am, here.
How Opportunity Zones benefit charters
As a result of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, based on where they’re located, charter schools may have opportunities to benefit from Opportunity Fund investments. If a charter opens in a designated Opportunity Zone, they may be able to reduce facility financing costs. You can learn more about this during an NAPCS webinar on February 21.
Ohio legislative updates
Legislative session is getting underway. Representative Blessing has been named chair of the House Education Committee, while Senator Lehner continues her tenure as Senate Education Committee chair. Bills are being rolled out in both chambers, and one bill in particular could impact charter schools. Representative Ingram has introduced House Bill 43, a bill that would eliminate the requirement for districts to offer unused buildings to charter schools before selling them to other entities. Given the facility challenges charters already face, this bill merits watching.
Other events
There are a couple other upcoming events in the charter school space. Don’t forget that on February 21, the School Performance Institute is hosting a workshop in Columbus and registration is open for the National Charter Schools Conference, which will be held from June 30-July 3 in Las Vegas.
