Coming up Tuesday, Aug. 18, at 9am, on WFAE’s “Charlotte Talks with Mike Collins,” a Back To School Update On Charter Schools In North Carolina.
It’s the first show I’ve produced for “Charlotte Talks,” taking a look at the growth and changes in charters with a panel that includes education reporter Ann Doss Helms of The Charlotte Observer, Cheryl Turner of Sugar Creek Charter and Rep. Charles Jeter of Huntersville, who has worked on charter legislation and has kids at Pine Lake Prep.
NC now has 160 charters, including the first two online charters opening this year. That’s up 60 percent from 2011, when the state lifted the 100-school limit. Since 1996, these schools have gotten public money for each student they enroll, but been exempt from many state and local rules governing traditional public schools. Growth has brought successes and failures … and a debate: Do we need more charters? Should charters take over low-performing traditional public schools? Should there more or less public oversight? What makes a successful charter?
See details on the show at WFAE.org
David Boraks 