Research conducted on a national level provides another way to learn more about the charter schools across the country and the status of the charter movement.
June. 2010 - A new study “The Evaluation of Charter School Impacts” was released by the US Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation. The study is the first large-scale randomized trial of effectiveness of charter middle schools that hold lotteries for admission.
Among the Findings: The study found that charter middle schools that held lotteries were more effective for lower income and lower achieving students and less effective for higher income and higher achieving students.
The Evaluation of Charter School Impacts
June . 2010 - A new report, 2010 Charter School Facility Finance Landscape was released by LISC (Local Initiatives Support Corporation) in late June. The report maps out nonprofit and public providers of funding and financing for charter school facilities in across the country.
The report includes information on funding by foundations, the tax-exempt bond market as well as federal and state initiatives to provide financing.
2010 Charter School Facility Finance Landscape
May. 2010 - A new study, "Charter School Funding - Inequity Persists" was released by researchers at Ball State University in Indiana which examined charter school funding in 25 states - including Minnesota - and follows up on a study done in 2005 by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute.
NOTE: The study shows that the inequity in per pupil funding in Minnesota actually grew in the years between the two studies.
Charter School Funding - Inequity Persists
May. 2010 - The National Association of Charter School Authorizers released the second annual report, "The State of Charter School Authorizing - 2009". The report is based on a survey conducted at the end of the 2008-2009 school year.
The survey explores the policies and practices of authorizers across the states and providers a comparison between authorizers of different sizes and types.
The State of Authorizing - 2009
January. 2010 - The Center for Education Reform issued its annual "Survey of America's Charter Schools". The survey looks at the size and scope of charters, the importance of multiple authorizers to growth, student demographics, and the management and operations of charter schools.