Lowell Sun editorial urges state approval of new SABIS school in Lowell, Massachusetts

The Lowell Sun

New charter school is good for Lowell

01/11/2012

On Thursday, representatives from the Collegiate Charter School of Lowell (CCSL) will go before the state Board of Education in Malden to answer questions about its proposal for a new school.

The school's Founding Committee, comprising area business and educational executives, will be joined by directors from SABIS international, the learning group that will operate the K-5 charter.

The Department of Education must approve the CCSL's proposal, and will be scrutinizing every detail of its proposed organizational structure, mission, academic offerings, recruitment of teaching staff and financial resources. A final decision is expected in February. If all goes well, the CCSL will be eligible to open in September 2013 with 540 students.

The Sun believes the city of Lowell, home to 106,000 residents, needs more public-school choices for parents and their children. In affluent communities, the range of school choices -- both public and private -- is broad, giving families opportunities to decide what is best for their children. Shouldn't Lowell parents have a similar chance to decide what is best for their kids? Damn right they should.

The CCSL, coupled with the existing Lowell Community Charter Public School (K-6), would greatly expand the menu of untapped options. According to DOE guidelines, the city has the capacity to offer 2,500 seats annually to charter-school students, yet is under-served by 72 percent.

The CCSL proposal presents a significant opportunity for Lowell to improve the quality of education throughout the city's public school system. Its mission isn't to "steal" students from Lowell Public Schools as critics contend, but to enhance the academic development of students who desire a different learning environment.

SABIS International has a splendid track record of operating charters in other urban centers. Its goal is to see that every student attending its schools goes on to attend college. It has been highly successful in achieving those lofty marks in both Holyoke and Springfield, where the traditional public schools have struggled mightily. We like the attitude of excellence that SABIS sets; it's a great model for serious learning.

The state's charter-approval process, however, can be somewhat political -- even though politics, by law, has nothing to do with DOE's final decision. We've detected a state education bias against SABIS simply because it is a for-profit business organization. You would think a well-run, efficient outfit would be welcome, but DOE officials hate to give up control to any outside experts other than themselves. They should be more concerned with the results of students.

We hope this mindset changes for the sake of our children. The Community Charter School of Lowell deserves a chance to open its doors and breathe fresh life and vitality into the city's educational landscape.

Read more in the Lowell Sun

SABIS 2011 graduates accepted to the world's best universities

Harvard, Yale, MIT, Oxford, Cambridge, Princeton, Brown, BC, Northwestern, NYU, London School of Economics and McGill were just some of the colleges and universities to which the 2011 graduates of the SABIS Schools Network were accepted.  In all, the 2011 class enrolled in 97 of the world's top 200 higher education institutions.  For a complete list of colleges and universities to which SABIS 2011 graduates were accepted click here!  What an impressive list it is too! 

Report: Education management sector expanding

WASHINGTON (AP) - A new report finds that even in a tough economy, companies that are contracted to manage charter schools and other public schools are expanding.

The report out Friday is by the National Education Policy Center at the University of Colorado Boulder.  It says that much of the growth is in the area of online learning, known as “virtual schools.”

The operators are known as education management organizations. The sector emerged in the 1990s as part of an effort to use the market to force changes in public education.

The report notes that there are almost 300 such companies today and that nearly 780,000 students attend schools operated by them. (Washington Times)

Educating the poor in India: lessons for America

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 06:00 AM PST

Posted by Peter Meyer - Bernard Lee Schwartz Policy Fellow on the Flypaper Blog

A fascinating story in the New York Times about schooling in India has a few things to teach American educators; mainly, that the poor really do want a good education. (I have had extended discussions with colleagues about the question of educating the poor (see here, here, and here) and Kathleen Porter Magee’s The “Poverty Matters” Trap is a must-read for anyone investigating the subject.)

As it turns out, public schools in India, like many in the U.S., are apparently lousy – “in many states,” write Vikas Bajaj and Jim Yardley about India, “government education is in severe disarray, with teachers often failing to show up.” But unlike the U.S., where charter schools and vouchers have begun to offer alternatives, In India the poor have turned to a network of private schools to educate their children. It is much as James Tooley described it in a 2005 story in Education Next (and his subsequent book, The Beautiful Tree), recounting amazing stories from around the world:

See the rest of the article here

Georgia Reform Advocates Debut New Movie

Georgia School Choice Documentary - Film to Premiere January 5th Join the Center for an Educated Georgia and other school choice organizations and advocates for the premiere of "Making the Grade in Georgia: Educational Freedom and Justice for All," a new documentary about K-12 education in Georgia and the impact of school choice. The 30-minute documentary describes the current status of school and student performance in Georgia and explains the educational options available today. Featuring interviews with educational experts, state leaders, principals, teachers, and students, the film showcases many examples of school choice, how it benefits a wide variety of students and families, and ways that Georgia can improve K-12 education by increasing quality educational options for all students The film premieres this Thursday, January 5, 2012 at the Cobb Galleria Centre and other satellite locations across the state. Admission is free. If you are unable to attend in person, you can watch a live stream of the film premiere online at www.MakingtheGradeMovie.com. "Making the Grade in Georgia: Educational Freedom and Justice for All" Thursday, January 5, 2012 at 7 p.m. Cobb Galleria Centre and at venues across Georgia. For more information and to register, go to www.MakingtheGradeMovie.com.