A Publication of the Resource Center for Charter Schools
Volume 9    Number 48     December 1, 2006  Pages: 3
Phone 361-561-8675 Fax 361-561-8677

Resource Center for Charter Schools All Rights Reserved
                                       

Special Thanks
to
Tenth Annual Texas Charter School Conference
General Session Speakers
Mrs. Barbara Bush Dr. Howard Fuller Nelson Smith
Senator Florence Shapiro Representative Rob Eissler
Morgan Brown Christi Martin Dr. Adrain Johnson John Pitts

Attendees benefited from the knowledge and enthusiasm of the following speakers.
Concurrent Session Presenters and Presentation Teams

Thank you to our sponsors of Monday evening’s Rock-it and Roll
Celebration!
ACE Charter C.H.O.I.C.E Vinson & Elkins, L.L.P.

NATIONAL CHARTER SCHOOL FACTS
(November 27, 2006)

Todd Ziebarth, Senior Policy Analyst
National Alliance for Public Charter Schools

Numbers of Charter Schools and Students

• There are nearly 4,000 public charter schools open, serving approximately 1.15 million students.
• About 400 new charter schools opened this fall; about 1,000 have opened over the past three years.
• About 105,000 new students enrolled in charters this fall; over 300,000 new students have enrolled in charters over the past three years.
• Six states account for 58% of all charter schools: California (16%), Arizona (12%), Florida (10%), Ohio, (7%), Texas (7%), and Michigan (6%).
• 2% of the nation’s public school students attend charter schools.
• Arizona is the state with the highest charter market share. 8% of Arizona’s students attend charter schools.
• In six communities, charter schools serve at least 20% of the public school students. New Orleans is the community with the highest charter market share (69%). In 19 communities, charter schools serve at least 13% of the public school students.
• In the City of Houston (encompassing nine traditional school districts), the charter market share is 6%. In the City of San Antonio (encompassing 12 traditional school districts), the charter market share is 5%.

Student Demographics

• Nationally, charters serve a higher percentage of students of color (58% in charters vs. 45% in non-charters), poor students (52% vs. 40%), English language learners (12% vs. 11%), but a lower percentage of special education students (11% vs. 13%).

Student Achievement

• The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools recently commissioned a summary of charter school achievement studies. In total, the summary examined 58 studies.
• Of the 58 studies, 25 looked at “snapshot” results (i.e., one point in time). Of these 25 studies, 15 show comparable or positive results for charters versus non-charters.
• Of the 58 studies, 33 looked at “change over time” results (i.e., multiple points in time). In 16 of the 33 studies, charter gains exceed non-charters; in 7, charter gains were faster in certain categories than non-charters (e.g., elementary, high, at-risk); in 6, charter gains were comparable to non-charters; and in only 4, charters were lagging non-charters.
• Bottom line: With each successive study that tracks student performance over time (as opposed to just taking a snapshot of performance at one point in time), we are able to say with increasing confidence that charter schools typically enroll students who are farther behind academically than their peers who stay in non-charter public schools AND charters typically improve their students’ performance at a faster rate than their non-charter peers.

FAQs for Grants Administered by TEA
The TEA Office for Planning, Grants and Evaluation is pleased to provide Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Grants in General Administered by TEA.  This initial document consists of more than 100 questions and answers pertaining to formula and discretionary grants.  Prepared by the TEA Division of Discretionary Grants, the FAQ document will be updated no more frequently than monthly.  Please view the document at www.tea.state.tx.us/opge/grantdev in the Awarded Grantees’ Toolbox.

A link to the FAQ will also be placed on the Formula Funding website at www.tea.state.tx.us/opge/formfund and on the Discretionary Grants website at www.tea.state.tx.us/opge/grantdev.

Please encourage any staff that manage or administer grants from TEA to review the FAQ periodically.  Individuals are encouraged to submit questions related to grants to the Division of Discretionary Grants email at DiscretionaryGrants@tea.state.tx.us.  Selected questions/answers will appear in subsequent updates to the FAQ.