Two articles published by Education Next earlier this month draw attention to the fact that parents seem to be happier with their children’s schools when they are able to choose them.
On December 15, the US Department of Education announced the launch of the Education Innovation Research (EIR) grant competition for 2017. The purpose of the grant is to support state and local efforts to develop, implement, and bring to scale innovative and evidence-based projects.
This post is the third in our series on the progress that the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) has made developing the state’s new accountability plan, as required under the year-old federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The two ESSA Accountability Committees—Technical and Advisory—have continued to meet and develop recommendations to submit to Commissioner Cassellius.
On December 6th, the Minnesota Association of Charter Schools (MACS) honored the winners of the first Minnesota Charter School Innovation Awards. The award program, which is the first of its kind in Minnesota, was created to showcase some of the most innovative practices being used in Minnesota’s charter schools.
In 2016, Friendship Academy of the Arts was recognized by the US Department of Education as a National Blue Ribbon School for their academic excellence. Threatened with closure in 2011, FAA has been able to turn around their school through the power of student-teacher-family relationships.
On November 8th, we blogged about Minnesota lease aid program and “affiliated building corporations” (ABCs). This post is a follow-up that examines the strategies and initiatives that other states have implemented to ease the burden of the costs associated with facilities for chartered schools.
For Minnesota charter schools, the process to receive facility funding is anything but simple. Two of the main ways that charters receive funding is through state provided building lease aid and affiliated building corporations. Here is an overview of those main funding streams.
In 2006, Yinghua Academy became the first Chinese immersion chartered school in the country. Ten years later, they've undergone a significant facility expansion and yet again reached enrollment capacity. In 2015, Yinghua was recognized by the US Department of Education as a National Blue Ribbon School—the first time in 15 years that a Minneapolis school received the honor.
On October 13th, 58 education advocates gathered to hear Kelly Young, executive director at Education Reimagined, give a presentation on the new organization’s work promoting learner-centered education. Here is a summary of the event, and of their transformational vision.
On September 28th, the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) announced six winners in the recent spring 2016 charter school grant competition. On the same day, the U.S. Department of Education recognized two Minnesota chartered schools as National Blue Ribbon winners.
