Be Fair In Demands We Put on Public Schools
Allentown Morning Call, PA, October 20, 2008
Of course, not all public school systems are thriving and many of them are struggling — especially in our cities. Before we blame the schools, however, shouldn’t we diagnose the causes?

Presidential Candidates in Favor of Charter Schools
The Times-Herald, GA, October 19, 2008
While presidential candidates John McCain and Barrack Obama don’t see eye-to-eye on the majority of political issues, they seem to agree on one — the proliferation of charter schools like Coweta’s Odyssey School.

Choice and Good Schools — Swedish Style
The Eureka Reporter, CA, October 19, 2008
Say “Sweden” and most Americans think Volvo and IKEA. There is more to the Scandinavian country, however, than just sturdy cars and innovative furniture. Sweden is the world leader when it comes to parental choice in education.

Unions Shortchange Teachers
Los Angeles Times, CA, October 18, 2008
Just a few weeks into the new school year, and in the midst of an important political season at the state and national level, it is an appropriate time to reflect on the relationship that the teachers unions have with their members.

Obama Questioned On Vouchers
National Journal, DC, October 18, 2008
Minority voters have long favored the Democratic Party’s push for increased federal funding for public schools. But over the past few years, some of these voters have embraced the conservative-backed idea of private-school vouchers for low-income students.

Will Charter Schools Act As Students’ Saving Grace?
Atlanta Journal Constitution, GA, October 20, 2008
If public education designed schools in a variety of shapes and sizes, Nelson Smith doubts the charter school movement would be as vigorous today. “But they didn’t,” said Smith, president of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. “They stuck with one size fits all.”

‘It’s Cool To Learn’
Hartford Courant, CT, October 20, 2008
The teachers at Achievement First don’t waste a minute of instruction: They flip flash cards while students are in line for the bathroom, count in Spanish as they move from one classroom to the next and ask for definitions for their words of encouragement.

Some Private Schools Losing Students Because of Economic Slump
Macon Telegraph, GA, October 20, 2008
For some families these days, paying thousands of dollars in private-school tuition is proving too much of a strain. At least half a dozen private schools across Bibb County show declines in student enrollment this fall, and the tough economic times are largely to blame, officials say.

South Florida Charter Schools Offering New Language Options
Miami Herald, FL, October 19, 2008
The handful of other foreign language charter schools in South Florida offer instruction in Spanish, French, Italian or Hebrew. A Mandarin Chinese school is planning to open in Miami-Dade in 2009.

Parents Vote with Feet For School Choice
Gwinnett Daily Post, GA, October 19, 2008
At the state Board of Education meeting last week, officials gave approval for almost 1,600 Georgia special-needs students to earn scholarships to attend private schools - an 80 percent surge over the 2007-08 school year.

Charter School Stresses College Prep
Dayton Daily News, OH, October 19, 2008
Pathway, a charter school operated by Michigan-based National Heritage Academies (NHA), stresses academic excellence, student responsibility, parent partnership and moral focus. That approach is paying off on test scores.

Vouching for Vouchers
Washington Post, D.C., October 18, 2008
IT WOULD be nice if facts, not ideology, framed the discussion over the District’s school voucher program.

Magnet Schools Still Have Pull with Students
Greenville News, SC, October 19, 2008
When then-Superintendent Tim Jenny introduced the idea of creating magnet schools in Greenville County in 1995, the main purpose was to draw students from suburban schools that were bursting at the seams to inner-city schools that had been losing enrollment.

Carpe Diem Charter School Ranked No. 1 in Yuma County by AIMS scores
Yuma Sun, AZ, October 19, 2008
Academic success is not about money but knowing students’ strengths and teaching to the areas where they need growth and letting them progress at their own pace, say officials of Carpe Diem, a tuition-free charter school.

Charter Schools Offering A Controversial Path to Higher Education
Delta Democrat Times, MS, October 18, 2008
DCPS itself is about to become a model for other, similar schools across the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta. KIPP Delta recently received a $2.6 million grant from the Charter School Growth Fund…

Calhoun Falls Charter School Testing Character of Students, Community
Anderson Independent Mail, SC, October 18, 2008
At Calhoun Falls Charter School, they use the word “character” when talking about the ultimate goal for the 232 youngsters who attend.