KIPP Raises $65 Million

In what the Washington Post is describing as the "strongest claim on mainstream American education," Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) will announce today that it has raised $65 million to open 42 charter schools in Houston.

Until now, charter schools have basically been seen as an "adjunct" or add on to a public school system. Due to restrictions in a number of states limiting the number of charter schools in teh state or a region of the state, there has never been a significant enough charter presence to truly challenge the public school system. According to the Houston Independent School District's website, the city serves 210,000 students in 300 schools. KIPP currently runs eight schools in Houston and with the 42 planned schools, KIPP will essentially be operating about 15 percent of the city's schools. For the first time, there will be compeition not only betweeen schools but between school systems and the students and parents will be the ultimate victors in the system.

But, KIPP's success still garners a great deal of criticism because their program includes nine-hour school days, Saturday schools, mandatory summer school and other elements that don't sit well with some people. In Washington, DC, where 1 of every 4 public school students attend a charter school, groups are still clinging to the myth that charters still cream the crop of students, leaving traditional public schools with the worst performing students. Of course, such a stance flies in the face of actual reality. Charters cannot discriminate on who is admitted and if they have more applications than seats they must hold a lottery for the open seats. Competition for those lotteries is fierce and it is not unusaly for Washington charters to have anywhere from 3 to 10 applicants for each seat, particularly at the most successful schools. The Post story notes:

About 85 percent of KIPP students are low-income, and almost all are black or Hispanic. KIPP middle schools take many who are two years behind in fifth grade and bring them up to grade level by the eighth.

But some critics say such impressive statistics stem in part from techniques that shape who attends the schools. Some who cannot adjust to high standards and long days return to regular public schools, these critics say, leaving KIPP with the best.

The fact that students (or their parents) can't adjust to the higher standards is not the fault of KIPP, but the fault of the parents and the public school system. For so long, we have allowed standards to languish and even regress that some students can't make the adjustement. This is a shame, but it only goes to show that students will the dedication and discipline, despite their impoverished socio-economic status can learn at a higher level.

The charter school movement has been successful in part because it serves not only as a market based option for parents, but also as a laboratory of new ideas. Chaters have the flexibility to try new programs, to experiment with curricula, pedagogy and other ideas that might not normally get a hearing in traditional public schools. But chaters also have a feature that traditional public schools don't; a mechanism for closing of failing schools. A charter can close in one of two ways, either its charter is pulled or parents stop choosing the school. The former can happen for political as well as educational reasons, but the latter can only happen when parents no longer trust the charter school to educate their children.