Welcome to The Charter Connection!
That’s right: we’re The Charter Connection now. Last issue, you voted for a new name for the National Charter School Resource Center (NCSRC) newsletter, and we listened!
This issue of the Charter Connection features newly available NCSRC resources, including useful charter school infographics, reports and toolkits from our charter school partners, and an old-fashioned trivia question. Get ready to dig in!
As you know, the charter sector is dynamic and there are a lot of great things happening. Next week, the U.S. Department of Education will be holding its annual Charter School Programs (CSP) project directors’ meeting, where more than 200 CSP grant recipients will convene in Washington, D.C., to talk about their projects and the charter sector as a whole. There will be exciting opportunities for CSP grantees to meet with technical assistance (TA) providers and CSP staff for one-on-one conversations, grantee networking and problem-solving, and discussions of sector trends and innovative practices from the field.
Want to attend next year’s meeting? Then your ticket is a CSP grant! Currently the Department of Education has issued a notice inviting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2020 for CSP Grants to State Entities. For eligible State Entities and anyone interested in learning about future CSP grant competitions, contact the NCSRC team – we’re here to help.
-The NCSRC Team
Great Resources
Click and Zoom
Check out this NCSRC infographic for a beautiful, shareable, and informative look at key facts and figures surrounding charter schools in America today, CSP’s charter school definition, and a brief history of charter schools in America.
What is High-Quality Authorizing?
NCSRC is developing a “Framework for High-Quality Authorizing Practices” based on existing research and best practices. The Framework will help define high-quality authorizing and guide NCSRC publications and technical assistance in the area of authorizing. The NCSRC team is also writing profiles describing states' authorizing policies and grant-related activities. To create these profiles, the team is actively reviewing state statute and policy to learn which states are creating environments that support high-quality charter authorization practices. NCSRC staff are collaborating with CSP SE grantees to ensure the profiles are accurate and current. Questions are welcome! If you’re a CSP State Entity grantee feel free to post your comments to the SEA/SE Exchange or, if not, send us an email.
Get SMART!
NCSRC published a new tool for writing and revising grant objectives to make sure they are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timebound). Whether you’re a first-time applicant or an experienced grantee reviewing project objectives, this toolkit will help you find out what S-M-A-R-T means to CSP.
What's Going On?
Black History Month
Charter School Programs (CSP) grantees are sharing how they are commemorating Black History Month with their audiences on Twitter. Check out a few examples!
Breakthrough Schools on Twitter
Kindergarteners at Citizens Academy East are learning all about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr for #BlackHistoryMonth and sharing their own dreams! #ihaveadream #MLK #BHM #dreambig #nevertooyoung #btcle
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DCPS World Languages on Twitter
Check out Sra. Nedelman's classroom at @TruesdellEC, celebrating Black History Month today and everyday!
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KIPP NYC on Twitter
For their #BlackHistoryMonth show on February 11, Londyn from #KIPPWashingtonHeights is preparing for her role as the great Nina Simone. #KIPPNYC
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Calendar Invites
Visit the events calendar on the NCSRC website for a regularly updated selection of national charter school events! Something missing? Let us know.
From Our Partners
New Year, New Resources
The NCSRC website added four great publications to its collection of resources. Check out these interesting and useful toolkits and reports today.
- “The State of the Charter Sector” by Bellwether Education Partners summarizes policies and trends and the current status of charter schools in the United States in this January 2019 presentation.
- “Building Capacity to Provide Quality Special Education Services and Supports” from the National Center for Special Education in Charter Schools provides opportunities and best practices for charter support organizations to successfully educate students with disabilities.
- “State Policy Snapshot: Facilities Funding for Public Charter Schools” by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools explores policies that support the procurement of charter school facilities and reviews the facility policy landscape across states.
- “Key Trends in Special Education in Charter Schools in 2015-2016” from the National Center for Special Education in Charter Schools identifies trends in enrollment, placement, and discipline data for students with special needs in charter schools from its secondary analysis of the Civil Rights Data Collection.