The mood about Kwiyagat Community Academy is upbeat though there are challenges finding licensed teachers in this remote corner of Colorado
charter schools
Posted inEducation
Colorado charter schools performing better than public schools, but serious gaps remain
A new report indicates charter schools have helped many elementary and middle school kids from low-income families continue learning through the pandemic. But there is more work to do.
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: With new law in place, charter schools are poised to close their special-education gap
Charter schools may feel like a relatively recent phenomenon, but next year, Colorado will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the first charter school in our state. When it authorized charter schools in 1993, the Colorado General Assembly allowed parents, teachers and community members “to take responsible risks and create new, innovative, more flexible ways of […]
Posted inColoradans, Education, News
No Colorado charter school has a union. That could change as New America School teachers rally to form one.
Most of Stephanie Ernst’s students at New America School in Aurora are immigrants who are still learning English, but after a rash of teacher and staff departures this school year, her students no longer have a Spanish program in which they can practice their first language. Nor do they have a school nurse. Or a […]
Posted inEducation, News
More students attend Colorado charter schools, but access still isn’t equal
More Colorado students than ever are enrolled in charter schools, and those students posted higher test scores than those of students in district-run schools during a pandemic-disrupted school year. At the same time, Colorado charter schools continue to enroll students with disabilities at some of the lowest rates in the nation, and many parents don’t […]
Posted inEducation, News
New union-backed Denver school board renews charter schools despite some reluctance
By Melanie Asmar, Chalkbeat Colorado Denver’s first school board in recent history to be backed entirely by the teachers union renewed the district’s contracts with 16 charter schools Thursday, despite some members expressing concerns with the independent public schools. Board President Xóchitl “Sochi” Gaytán was the only one of seven board members to vote “no” […]
Posted inEducation, News, Politics and Government
Denver isn’t pursuing a true-up with charter schools that got federal coronavirus loans
Denver charter schools that received federal COVID-related small business loans last spring won’t need to forgo any future funding to make up for the $16 million in forgivable loans they received, district and charter officials said. An earlier agreement implied such a reconciliation would happen. It was never clear how the arrangement would work, only that the […]
Posted inEducation, News, Politics and Government
Effort to expand Colorado districts’ power to reject charter schools is voted down
Colorado lawmakers rejected a bill Thursday that would have made it easier for school boards to turn down new charter schools after more than four hours of emotional testimony, much of it from charter school families who felt the change would reduce educational opportunities. The bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Jennifer Bacon, a Democrat who also […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Colorado lawmakers should reject a charter-school bill that deprioritizes kids
House Bill 1295 was introduced last month at the Colorado Capitol with the innocuous title, “Rebuttable Presumption in Charter School Appeals.” Despite this seemingly harmless name, the bill actually represents one of the more dangerous proposals brought forth against students and families this entire legislative session. Sponsored by state Rep. Jennifer Bacon, D-Denver, who is […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Colorado charter schools stand out during a hard year for public education
A year ago, few of us understood exactly how much our world was about to change. Lockdowns, face coverings, business closures and mandatory remote learning were issues that people in other countries were contending with, not those of us here in the United States. Obviously, that is no longer true. It was a year of […]