The Arizona Republic ran an extensive series on school choice this past weekend, highlighting Arizona’s expansive education options.
Many of our charter schools were featured prominently in the stories, which covered topics ranging from the state’s rich history of school choice to how families can pick the right school for their students, whether it’s an arts, academics, online or STEM school.
“We’ve created a robust school choice environment in Arizona,” said Eileen Sigmund, president of the Arizona Charter Schools Association.
Here are some of the highlights from the series:
Arizona Has Rich History of School Choice
This story highlighted the state’s history of school choice and some positive trends, including the doubling of charter school enrollment within the past decade and Arizona’s number three ranking on the Center for Education Reform’s “Parent Power Index.” “I don’t know of any other state that has a better system in place than we do,” said Greg Miller, president of the Arizona State Board of Education and our 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award winner.
The story also covered the history of Reid Traditional Schools, which was founded 20 years ago by teachers and has since become a top-ranked, National Blue Ribbon School. Click here to read the story.
Choosing a STEM, Arts or College Prep School
Arizona has a diverse offering of charter schools, catering to the many needs of the state’s students. The Republic featured many of these schools, including specialty schools such as Arizona School for the Arts, Sonoran Science Academy and Legacy Traditional Schools, college prep schools such as BASIS, and finally Great Hearts Academies, which integrates specialty courses into its liberal arts focus. It’s important for parents to know which options are available and what schools fit best for their students. The Republic covers those options in detail. Click here to view the list of stories.
The Right Schools for Athletes
Athletics are an important part of the middle and high school experience for many students. This story covers various aspects of choosing a school for an athlete, including transfer rules and extracurricular fees. Charter schools are an important part of the athletic landscape as charters look to provide “that whole experience for the student,” said Randall Baum, executive director of the Charter Athletic Association. Click here to read more.
Finding the Right Fit
One of the main benefits of school choice is it allows parents to find the right fit for their child. That’s exactly what happened with Marisa Huff and her son Robert, who found the perfect match in Sonoran Science Academy-Peoria, which focuses on math, science, engineering and technical education. The Republic also provides tools for parents to find and research schools , including the Association’s Education Evaluator, which offers information on all public schools and lets parents compare enrollment-information, student-achievement and student-funding data.
