More resources
The National Association of Public Charter Schools has made great strides in boosting the amount of resources posted on its website to support charter schools through the chaos of pandemic-mitigation school closures.
Any port in a storm
A number of school closure orders across the country have—oddly and opportunistically, perhaps—attempted to include online charters. The outcry from the charter community and its advocates has been strong, of course. However, a number of online schools are expressing caution against the idea of taking on an influx of new students during a time of crisis; especially students who may not return in the fall.
The view from Cincinnati
Many parents can, it must be said, be forgiven for seeking any port in this particular storm. Rather than creating new problems, the chaos engendered in education by the pandemic response has shined a bright light on existing problems. That dynamic can be seen rather starkly in this piece from the Cincinnati Enquirer which focuses on the parent and student perspective of learning from home, including district and charter school examples. Parents, it seems, are largely on their own.
The view from Lorain
Horizon Science Academy in Lorain handed out 300 Chromebooks to student this week, hoping to begin online learning in earnest. However, the student need seems to have exceeded the supply. Here’s hoping that more resources are soon available.
The view from Dayton
“Two of our…core values are ‘do what’s right’ and ‘invest deeply in relationships’. In times like these, we have to live those values more than ever.” These are the words of DECA deputy superintendent Dave Taylor. He was responding to the generous contribution of The Connor Group, a local real estate investment firm, to the Dayton charter school of more than $150,000 worth of food and WiFi hotspots for students.
Non-pandemic news
There are occasional news stories these days that don’t have anything to do with the current emergency. A case in point is this report from Florida, in which the state’s Schools of Hope legislation has withstood legal challenges up to and including the state supreme court. The ruling should allow the expansion of charter schools in the state to move forward…at some point after normality returns.
