The Problem Hundreds of communities and neighborhoods throughout Illinois are badly in need of better schools. In those communities it should be a realistic option for innovative educators to create new school choices for students and their families. The past fifteen years have witnessed the creation and spread of a new kind of public school:...
The Problem What would you do if your children could be on a championship-level team…but they weren’t allowed to try out? Every day, Chicago kids prove they can compete. All they need is the opportunity. Tragically, thousands of children are not given a chance to “try out” for better schools. They are locked into continually...
Thousands of children in Chicago are not given a chance to “try out” for better schools. They are locked into continually failing schools with low graduation rates, largely because Illinois lawmakers will not remove the arbitrary cap placed on the number of charter schools in the state. However, urban charter school graduation rate rival the...
The Issue Throughout Illinois, a new kind of public school has emerged: charter schools. The “charter school movement,” as it has been called, has been a success in Illinois. Studies have consistently shown that charter schools routinely perform above the norm at comparable district schools. To date, however, most of these studies of school performance...
There are more than two million students enrolled in Illinois’ public schools. Private providers — firms and individual contractors — play a pivotal role in helping schools to educate those children. No district can perfectly predict the future needs of their students. Nor can every district maintain a permanent staff capable of meeting the specific...
Executive Summary Illinois has 871 school districts. Each one is supposed to efficiently provide a high-quality education to all students who enroll in its schools. It is no secret that many districts have struggled with providing a high-quality education. Others have struggled to do so efficiently. A number of reforms exist to help school districts...
Many Illinois children are currently trapped in failing public schools. Most of these children, whose futures are put at risk due simply to geography and bureaucracy, would thrive if given equal choices and greater educational opportunities. Those opportunities can come in the form of the expansion of a simple tax credit—the Illinois Education Expense Tax...
The most significant development in American public education over the past fifteen years has been the advent of charter schools. There are more than 4,000 charter schools operating nationwide. Some states are home to hundreds of charter schools. Illinois is lagging far behind. There are only 35 charter schools in Illinois, enrolling less than one...