CRPE’s research examines both the promise and the challenges of charter schools and school choice, with a focus on how they can expand opportunity, drive innovation, and better serve diverse student needs. We study charter schools alongside district schools and other models, highlighting lessons that can inform the broader system. New data and evidence help innovators across the country collaborate, communicate, and develop best practices.
In 2014, the first public charter schools opened in Washington state. The development led to years of controversy, but the debates often bypassed the opinions of people with important experience: parents of enrolled students.
Lakisha Young writes about building pathways for minoritized students to access higher-performing schools when their current schools were closed during the pandemic.
CRPE’s September 2022 brief, “Shifting students: A look at Washington State school enrollment from 2020 to 2022,” found that fewer students were enrolled in the state’s traditional public schools in 2021-22 than 2019-20, while enrollment in private schools, home schools, and public charter schools increased during that time.
As in other states, enrollment in Washington State’s public schools has shifted during the Covid-19 pandemic. This brief examines enrollment changes in Washington’s district, charter, private, and home schools from September 2019 to September 2021.
Charters and traditional schools are often portrayed as at odds with each other. But this collaboration shows that isn’t always the case—and it shows promise for the future.
