Month: August 2018

By Ildi Laczko-Kerr and Eileen Sigmund
A common myth is that alternative schools serve as a “last resort” for at-risk students or as a means to re-entry into school for students who have dropped out and are under-credited and over-aged. Recent data demonstrate that in fact, many students are choosing to enroll in alternative schools before ever stepping foot on a traditional high school campus.

An alarming percentage of students are leaving their non-alternative district school and choosing to attend an alternative charter school, beginning in ninth grade. These students are either self-identified as at-risk, or designated as such by their district school. However, they are not drop-outs because 1) nearly all were promoted from grade 8; and 2) they have not started their high school classes so they are not under-credited or credit deficient. In other words, alternative charter schools are casting a much wider safety-net for Arizona’s academically struggling students than previously thought.

By Ildi Laczko-Kerr and Eileen Sigmund

Contrary to the common myth that charters skim the “cream of the crop” from school districts, the average student who transferred to a charter school over the summer in 2015 from a district school performed below the state average on AzMERIT in both math and English language arts. At the same time, districts that received students from charter schools during summer transfer actually enrolled higher performing students; begging the question: Who’s creaming whom?

By Eileen Sigmund

Early voting is underway for the 2018 primary elections. With that in mind, the Association asked all legislative candidates running for elected office in 2018 to participate in a survey that sought their perspectives on education in Arizona.

As Arizona’s largest charter support organization, we believe education should and must be the top priority for lawmakers this session. Survey results show that legislative candidates largely agree. According to the survey, more than 80 percent of candidates rank education as their first or second priority. An overwhelming majority also support parent choice and charter schools, and more equitable funding between district and charter schools.