Great authorizers — those with strong portfolios of charter schools — are moving the needle for their communities.
Great authorizers ensure that the schools they charter deliver results.
Great authorizers — those with strong school portfolios and performance outcomes — implement foundational best practices that NACSA has promoted for years.
The second thing
great authorizers do is build the capacity to charter schools, oversee and support their operations, and evaluate their performance in a top - quality manner.
Great authorizers believe in the need for education reform and are willing to do something about it.
Great authorizers are doing outstanding work; see the DCPCSB accountability approach.
CREDO research has demonstrated the value of
great authorizers, and NACSA has helped professionalize and improve this field.
Smart philanthropists should provide financial support to
great authorizers; smart reformers should go lead and staff them.
For example, the report cites a 2002 BSA report which is over 13 years old and does not acknowledge that the next year the law changed creating specific
greater authorizer responsibilities.
Not exact matches
Behind the Headline
Authorizers: See What Replacing Failing Charter Schools, Replicating
Great Ones Can Do 3/19/13 Education Next
Just 50 percent of
authorizers report having carried out a replication or expansion project, and less than a quarter have differentiated application processes for
great schools seeking to grow.
You would want to put in place a strong
authorizer, ample funding, and a charter - friendly law and work to build a
great charter sector like those in place in cities like Boston, New Orleans, and the District of Columbia.
They do
great work to help charter
authorizers significantly improve their practices.
Districts score lower than non-district
authorizers overall, and their policies are far less friendly to replication than non-district
authorizers, meaning they are less likely to help
great charters create more high - quality seats.
It can create a
great new non-district
authorizer, and maybe even a cross-sector chancellor or a Hill - Jochim board to help organize the system.
Charter school quality,
authorizer quality, and
authorizer accountability are all
great topics of conversation for policymakers in Michigan.
NACSA supports
authorizers in becoming
great with on - the - job resources and a professional network.
Schools run by CMOs have produced
greater gains in student learning on state assessments than their district - school counterparts, while the mom - and - pops have fared less well, possibly making the single - site schools less attractive to
authorizers.
Some
authorizers do
great work (e.g. the District of Columbia's Public Charter School Board, the Massachusetts Department of Education and the State University of New York) but too many others display mixed motives, are influenced by perverse incentives, and lack judgment, courage, or expertise.
In some cities,
authorizers and charter supporters have begun building the systems needed to replace failing schools and replicate
great ones.
If we as an
authorizer relied solely or primarily on PI ratings, these
great schools might be shut — wrongly.
To compensate for that, the mayor got on the phone and called the local
authorizers, which were universities, and said, «We'd like to get some
great schools to St. Louis.
She believes that every child has the capacity to be a successful learner and through her work as an
authorizer, she strives to empower
great schools in serving their students.
There is
great power in working collaboratively with all charter
authorizers and tapping into expertise at CPS, as well as around the country, that has often been underutilized.
Authorizers have an essential role to play in assuring that charter schools follow all special education laws and produce
great results for kids with disabilities.
What are the nation's best charter school
authorizers doing differently to achieve
great outcomes within their communities?
In Indianapolis, that accountability under two mayoral
authorizers has yielded
great results.
By addressing this issue as well as clarifying the state's
authorizer evaluation process, the legislature sends a clear message that quality authorizing is essential to creating
great public charter schools.
Many
authorizers, charter support organizations, and philanthropies are facilitating the growth of networks with a proven record of success, hoping to generate positive impact on a
greater scale.
Today the Fordham Institute published a
great commentary piece by Jamie Davies O'Leary on why we should expect more of our gatekeepers of charter schools:
authorizers.
The National Association of Charter School
Authorizers (NACSA) is working to double the number of students in
great public charter schools by advancing policies and practices that promote quality, autonomy, and choice.
If the school board fully moves away from managing schools, it would even allow for
greater school choice to be fostered; the school board would take on the role of charter school
authorizers, bringing in high - quality charter operators into the county and offering
greater choice.
«It takes two entities to make a
great charter school: the
authorizer and the school itself.»
New report finds successful authorizing depends on
great leadership, institutional commitment, and strong professional judgment CHICAGO — Today, the National Association of Charter School
Authorizers (NACSA) releases «Leadership, Commitment, Judgment: Elements of... Read More
The National Association of Charter School
Authorizers (NACSA) is an independent voice for effective charter school policy and thoughtful charter authorizing practices that lead to more
great public schools.
Given the increasing evidence showing that schools that start strong, stay strong, it's time for policymakers and
authorizers to implement the policies and practices needed to grow the
great schools and shutter the worst.
But we need more: we need
authorizers who are empowered to make the best decisions for children using
great leadership, deep institutional commitment, and strong professional judgment.
For more information about some of the charter
authorizers in the
Greater San Diego region, check out links to:
Fordham's commitment goes beyond quality authorizing of
great schools: it seeks to be an exemplary
authorizer for others to emulate.
Laura Otto Read Essay 12th grade, Michigan
Great Lakes Virtual Academy ESP: K12
Authorizer: Manistee Area Public Schools
«While it would be incorrect to assume that a high - profile instance such as this is reflective of the broader charter school movement, this case does bring to light legitimate concerns about
authorizer accountability and the urgent need for
greater public transparency in financial agreements between charter schools and
authorizers,» the charter association told the San Diego Union - Tribune when Van Zant pleaded guilty in February.
Hailey Dykhouse Read Essay 7th grade, Michigan
Great Lakes Virtual Academy ESP: K12
Authorizer: Manistee Area Public Schools
In principal, the 2009 changes (in my view reaffirmed that) sponsors /
authorizers were to have
greater authority and oversight responsibility with MDE having more of an administrative oversight role.
«Alternative
authorizers will lead to additional charter schools, which will result in
greater competition and an increase in the quality of all schools, both traditional public schools and public charter schools,» said Haag.
And in Ohio, you simply can't discuss the weak results without asking what role
authorizers are playing — as noted in the rest of her comment: «We need to have a
greater degree of oversight of charter schools.
I'm no longer speaking for one
great school, but instead speaking for charter school
authorizers.
And a study by American Enterprise Institute found that of 15 state education agency
authorizers, Texas» application requires the
greatest number of tasks - more than double what's required by Massachusetts, which is renowned for its high - performing charter sector.
Despite the promise of
greater autonomy, many state and
authorizer policies limit the amount of freedom that charter schools actually experience.