Feds Award $25 Million to Successful Charter Schools
U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan awarded $25 million in grants to “highly quality” charter schools on Wednesday, continuing the Obama Administration’s strong support for high-performing charter schools. In his September 28 press release, Secretary Duncan explained that these charters are making a difference in the lives of low-income students by raising achievement:
Several high-quality charter schools across the country are making an amazing difference in our children’s lives, especially when charters in inner-city communities are performing as well, if not better, than their counterparts in much wealthier suburbs. Every one of our grantees serves a student population that is majority low-income and virtually all exceed the average academic performance for all students in their state.
Charter Schools are public schools that typically are free of the more cumbersome components of state and district regulations governing schools, particularly those involving the hiring of teachers and staff. Charter Schools also are accountable for their outcomes. This means that if they do not meet pre-determined learning goals within a defined time (according to their “charter”) they can be shut down.
The KIPP network of schools received the largest share of the grant money to build an additional 18 schools throughout the U.S.
Here is a listing of each charter school network and its grant allocation:
| Name | Funding Amount | Project Description | |
| KIPP Foundation in consortium with KIPP regions | $9,463,103.00 | 18 new schools in Atlanta, GA, Austin, TX, Chicago, IL, Washington, DC, Gaston, NC, Houston, TX, Jacksonville, FL, Los Angeles, CA, Memphis, TN, Newark, NJ, New York, NY, and San Antonio, TX | |
| Rocketship Education | $1,881,569.00 | 56 new schools in Oakland, Milwaukee, New Orleans, and Chicago | |
| DC Preparatory Academy | $878,824.00 | 4 new schools in Washington, DC | |
| Success Charter Network, Inc. | $1,740,970.00 | Project description: 6 new schools in New York | |
| Richard Milburn Academy, Inc. | $1,575,562.00 | 6 new schools in Texas | |
| Uncommon Schools | $1,400,000.00 | 9 new schools in Newark and Boston | |
| Breakthrough Charter Schools | $3,488,060.00 | 8 new schools and 3 expanded schools in Cleveland, OH | |
| Alliance College Ready Public Schools | $3,139,983.00 | 10 new schools in Los Angeles | |
| Cosmos Foundation, Inc. | $1,431,929.00 | 7 new schools in Texas |
