By Eric Berschback
Recently released results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) show that Arizona’s public charter school students have posted greater scale score gains than any individual state, from 2009 to 2017. The data show that when measured as their own “state”, Arizona charter students outpaced the gains realized by their state level peers in all four major tested subjects: fourth grade reading and math, as well as eighth grade reading and math.
The Arizona Charter Schools Association is proud to announce the hiring of Matthew Simon as its Director of Government Affairs. Simon, a Tucson native, joins the Association after serving as Education Policy Advisory for Senate Majority Staff. During his time at the Arizona State Legislature, Simon developed a wealth of education finance and policy knowledge. Simon is a former high school science teacher and Teach for America corps member. He graduated from Arizona State University with a B.S. in Political Science and is working towards his MBA in 2019.
“As a former teacher, Matthew understands the impact advocacy and policy can have on the classroom,” said Eileen B. Sigmund, President and CEO of the Arizona Charter Schools Association. “Matthew brings another layer of support to Association members and we are thrilled to have his expertise on our team to inform policymakers of the excellent work in Arizona’s public charter schools.”
By Jamar Younger
After a self-published and flawed report on public charter schools, Arizona’s charter community and the Arizona Republic quickly responded that charter schools are held accountable and school leaders are motivated by student success, not financial gain.
The Arizona Charter Schools Association issued the first set of responses with a statement and letter to our schools emphasizing that charter schools are academically successful, which is what matters most.
Here is a roundup of the other responses:
By Jamar Younger
Arizona’s A-F letter grade system has served as the outward-facing indicator of a school’s quality since it was introduced in 2010.
For charter schools, A-F letter grades influence high stakes decisions such as whether a school or network can renew its charter, increase its enrollment and open another campus.
Ultimately, if a charter school receives an ‘F,’ it may potentially lead to the school’s closure.
That’s why the next six weeks will provide a series of defining moments as the state looks to complete its revamp of the new, proposed A-F Framework crafted by the state’s A-F Ad Hoc Committee.
Charter school leaders and advocates from across Arizona gathered at the State Capitol Thursday to meet with their local legislators for our third annual “Charters at the Capitol.”
Our leaders attended meetings, shook hands, took photos and described the integral role of charter schools within their communities. The group also engaged in meaningful conversations regarding the advantages and challenges of operating a charter school, and what needs to be done to improve education in Arizona.
This was originally published in the Arizona Capitol Times:
The coming year will be a critical time for the school choice movement in Arizona and nationally.
Rapid enrollment growth over the past 20 years has demonstrated the popularity of public charter schools when parents are given an option in their children’s education. In Arizona, 180,000 students now attend one of 547 charter schools across the state. Since 2007-08, charter enrollment nationally has more than doubled and now stands at nearly 3 million.
Even more impressive: Consider that another 1 million students are on waiting lists nationwide to attend a public charter school. Clearly, these schools are meeting a critical demand of American families.
Nearly 9 in 10 candidates running for the Arizona Legislature – 87 percent – say they rank K-12 education as their first or second priority. That’s according to legislative candidates who responded to a new survey distributed by the Arizona Charter Schools Association.
The Association, a non-profit advocacy organization for public charter schools, asked all Arizona legislative candidates to participate in a survey that sought their perspectives on public education.
The survey posed a dozen questions to candidates on a variety of topics related to public schools, both charter and district. You can find a complete list of questions and survey results here.