Hopes, Fears, & Reality: A Balanced Look at American Charter Schools in 2011

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January 2012
Robin Lake, Betheny Gross

Download Full Report (PDF: 1541 K)

Charter schools are public schools. Historically, however, the relationship between school districts and charters has been nonexistent at best, antagonistic at worst. As the charter sector continues to grow steadily, an analysis of the national landscape explores how that relationship needs to start changing—and where it already has.

This year's 6th annual edition of Hopes, Fears, & Reality provides a clear roadmap for school districts and charter schools interested in working together to improve education options. The report explains the risks and technical challenges behind charter-district collaboration and provides powerful examples of how they can be overcome.

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Experts Weigh In For the release of our sixth annual report, we invited several experts to share their opinions. Read more here.

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The report is timely. More than 20 urban districts have adopted what is known as a “portfolio” strategy, where district-run and independent charter schools are treated equally and held to the same performance standards. In 16 cities to date, leaders have signed public compacts committing to put aside differences and work together for student success. These cities are creating common student enrollment systems, sharing facilities, equalizing funding, encouraging teachers and principals to share instructional strategies, and sharing responsibility for students with special needs.

These leaders have realized that economically, politically, and academically, school districts and charter schools can no longer afford to go it alone. “Urban school superintendents across the country are realizing that a centrally delivered, one-size-fits-all approach simply is not viable, and that they need partnerships to bring in entrepreneurial talent and mission-driven teams,” writes editor Robin Lake.

The report includes:

• Guidance on how to arm parents with knowledge to help them navigate district-wide choice systems (from Paul Teske of University of Colorado, Denver) and how to create city-wide enrollment systems that take charter schools into account (from Tom DeWire of Baltimore Public Schools).
• An instructive guide to how the school district and charters came to share financial resources and facilities in Denver, by Parker Baxter of CRPE.
• An analysis by Lake and co-editor Betheny Gross of CRPE of how district and charter schools can together provide better options for students with special needs.
• A close look, by 4.0 Schools’ Matt Candler, at one organization’s attempt to train and incubate school leaders to create a strong supply of effective new charter and district schools in the Southeast region of the U.S.

The report also provides new facts about the nation’s more than 5,000 charter schools and their students. CRPE research finds that charters are expanding notably in rural areas, small towns, and small states; that charters serve a growing share of Hispanic and low-income students; and that freestanding charter schools are growing faster than those run by charter management organizations.