Our Schools
From Observatory
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The school district was at the forefront of a public education model that is gaining national popularity—but its decision undercuts what the community appreciates about each school’s custom offerings that put students first.
Reports have revealed an alarming level of financial waste (an estimated $1.17 billion in federal tax dollars), fraud, and abuse in the charter school industry that resulted from the Charter Schools Program’s poor oversight of spending and a slipshod review process for grant approval. Meanwhile, charter advocates continue to lobby for their funding.
A district in the Washington, D.C., suburbs shows how a transformative approach to school improvement can address longstanding opportunity gaps in education.
While politicians pit parents against schools, educators are finding a way to make parent involvement integral to what the school does.
A destructive voucher program drained the state of millions of education dollars.
Former teachers and board members say charters run by Accel Schools are designed to fail.
Experts call for cultivating better student relationships and providing families with more supports—exactly what the community schools approach is all about.
DeVos’s divisive tenure as U.S. secretary of education under the Trump administration will have repercussions for decades to come.
An approach to transformative school improvement challenges existing education models.
Charter school funders like Eli Broad turned school leadership into a cartel system focused on advancing careers and enriching businesses.
A state where schools experienced deep adversities before COVID-19 shows the nation a pathway forward.
A 2022 study warns that career and technical education and advanced digital systems increasingly lock children into narrow school curricula and prescribed workplace futures.
The transformative approach to school improvement is a catalyst for community revival.
Our Schools goes to the front lines of the nationwide effort to privatize and undermine the public education system. It exposes the false promises of charter schools, voucher programs, and corporate-style reforms and spotlights how communities are fighting back and often succeeding against the school privatization agenda.
Associated Authors
Jeff Bryant is a writing fellow and chief correspondent for Our Schools. He is a communications consultant, freelance writer, advocacy journalist, and director of the Education Opportunity Network.
