Start with the big picture
Conor P. Williams, a fellow at The Century Foundation, penned an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal this week in which he called progressive politicians’ attacks on charter schools “misguided”. Many of the sins of which charter schools are accused are par for the course in traditional district schools, he argues, and they aren’t even hidden. “[I]t’s official policy,” he writes, “designed to help wealthy families consolidate their advantages by purchasing access to privileged neighborhood schools.”
Helping scholars succeed
Tatiana Jackson, a teacher at a United Schools Network school in Columbus, published on op-ed in the Dispatch this week, in which she illustrated Williams’ point by describing the incredible work that she and her colleagues do every day to help all of their scholars learn, grow, and succeed.
The inspiring words of charter students and alums
The work of budding poets and prose writers from Dayton Leadership Academies was included in a new book published last week by a non-profit organization looking to amplify the voices of young people in the Gem City. Meanwhile, a DLA alum, rapper YelloPain, was gaining national attention for his song and video “My Vote Don’t Count”. It was written to help spread information about the importance of voting and to draw attention to the rapper’s hometown.
One fewer
Cleveland Metropolitan School District this week announced that Stonebrook Montessori School, a charter sponsored by the district since 2015 and a rare example of the Montessori education method used in a charter school setting, would be “merged” with a nearby existing traditional district building next school year. The stated plan is for the merged school to become fully Montessori again…eventually.
