The Innovation Schools Act of 2008, § 22-32.5-102, et seq. C.R.S., was designed to provide a pathway for schools and districts to develop and implement innovative practices in a wide variety of areas and contexts to improve student outcomes. The Act provides a formal process that allows schools or groups of schools to make requests to their local…

California has long maintained ambitious goals for arts education. The state Education Code requires schools to offer courses of study in four arts disciplines to all California K-12 students. In 2005/06, with support from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, SRI Education researchers conducted a study of arts education in California. The…

Having access to an excellent teacher is one of the most important factors for student achievement. However, access to excellent teachers--this crucial talent resource--is in increasingly limited supply. In 2017, Arizona took bold action on teacher certification requirements in a joint effort with A for Arizona and the US Chamber Foundation. By…

Across the country, urban school districts are moving beyond industrial-era systems by creating "innovation" or "partnership" schools that have the freedom to reinvent the way they educate students. The Progressive Policy Institute released a how-to guide for legislators, district leaders, and advocates who want to create more…

During and for many years after the 2008-10 Great Recession, financial crises in districts across the country triggered varying state involvement in those districts' finances and governance, up to and including complete takeover. While these actions were most prominent in a handful of states, all states have laws that enable them to intervene in…

The Innovation Schools Act of 2008, § 22-32.5-102, et seq. C.R.S., was designed to provide a pathway for schools and districts to develop and implement innovative practices in a wide variety of areas and contexts to improve student outcomes. The Act provides a formal process that allows schools or groups of schools to make requests to their local…

Today, Indianapolis has 21 innovation schools serving one in four of its public-school students. Two new rigorous studies point to promising student-achievement gains. These autonomous district schools stand against a backdrop of a thriving public charter sector and a private-school voucher program that fill the gaps. What made this all possible?…

The Innovation Schools Act of 2008, § 22-32.5-102, et seq. C.R.S, was designed to provide a pathway for schools and districts to develop and implement innovative practices in a wide variety of areas and contexts to improve student outcomes. The Act provides a formal process that allows schools or groups of schools to request to their local school…

The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown on July 1, 2013, represents an historic and path-breaking shift for California, the first comprehensive change in the state's education funding system in 40 years. Each district now receives a base funding allocation and, in keeping with the law's equity focus, added…

"Education, Equity, and the States" examines how variations in state governance determine how federal initiatives are implemented and makes recommendations for approaching reform from this perspective. The book defines the key ways in which state policy environments differ from one another, illustrates how those differences matter, and…

The Innovation Schools Act of 2008, § 22-32.5-102, et seq. C.R.S, was designed to provide a pathway for schools and districts to develop and implement innovative practices in a wide variety of areas to improve student outcomes. The Act provides a formal process that allows schools or groups of schools to petition their local school boards for…

The word innovation can mean a number of things to different stakeholders and policymakers. This discourse analysis examines how the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has used an initiative called "Districts of Innovation" to attempt to support and empower districts throughout the state of Texas. The question becomes whether those attempts…

Charter schools face high-stakes accountability. When charter schools fail to perform as expected, including as measured on state tests, authorizers are often expected to close them. While the details of charter school oversight are shaped by each state's charter school policy, federal law influences how states test children and evaluate all…

The Innovation Schools Act of 2008, § 22-32.5-102, C.R.S. et seq., was designed to provide a pathway for schools and districts to develop and implement innovative practices in a wide variety of areas for the purpose of improving student outcomes. The Act provides a formal process that allows schools or groups of schools to petition their local…

Facing a declining K-12 student population and rising education costs, Vermont lawmakers approved Act 46 in 2015. This legislation has the potential to consolidate school districts that have fewer than 900 students. The law aims to significantly reduce the number of districts in the state by using tax incentives as a carrot and forced…