Jeremy Scahill, author of Dirty Wars, interviewed by Democracy Now!'s Amy Goodman & Juan González

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Charter Schools Topics

Democracy Now! stories, posts and pages that relate to Charter Schools

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  • Obama's Choice for Education Secretary, Arne Duncan, Seen as Compromise Between Divided Strands

    As chief executive officer of the Chicago public school system, the third largest in the country, Education Secretary-designate Arne Duncan expanded charter schools and launched a performance pay plan for teachers. Duncan was seen as a compromise pick between progressive and conservative education advocates. We speak to Michael Klonsky, professor of education and longtime school reform activist in Chicago, and Deborah Meier, a well-known teacher,...
    Dec 18, 2008 | Story

  • Teaching Pioneer Deborah Meier on Obama's Education Policy and the Future of Charter Schools

    As part of the Obama administration’s education plan, Education Secretary Arne Duncan has urged states to consider partnerships with successful charter school operators. We speak to Deborah Meier, who has spent nearly four decades working in public education as a teacher, principal, writer and public advocate. She is considered to be the founder of the small schools movement and founded a number of public elementary and secondary schools...
    May 21, 2009 | Story

  • Education Secretary Arne Duncan Pushes to Aggressively Expand Charter Schools While Admitting Problems

    The Obama administration has made opening more charter schools one of its top priorities in its plans to improve the nation’s education system. On Monday, Education Secretary Arne Duncan spoke at the annual gathering of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools in Washington, DC. His address came on the heels of a new Stanford University report that found that, on average, students in charter schools were not faring as well as students...
    Jun 23, 2009 | Story
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    Study: Charter Schools Increasing Racial Segregation in Classrooms

    Encouraged by the Obama administration, efforts to expand the number of charter schools are being organized around the country. But concerns are being raised about the system. We speak to UCLA’s Civil Rights Project co-director Gary Orfield about a new study that suggests charter school growth is increasing classroom segregation. [includes rush transcript]
    Feb 11, 2010 | Story
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    Roundtable: Do Charter Schools Worsen Inequality of Two-Tiered Education System, or Help Address It?

    We host a roundtable discussion on charter schools and the controversial closing of ninetten New York City public schools with New York State Senator Bill Perkins, one of the most vocal state lawmakers against lifting the cap on charter schools in New York; Seth Andrew, superintendent and founder of the Democracy Prep charter school in Harlem; Daniel Clark, Sr., the field director of advocacy group Parent Power Now!; and Leonie Haimson, executive...
    Feb 11, 2010 | Story
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    Juan Gonzalez: Eva Moskowitz Has Special Access to Schools Chancellor Klein

    "Schools Chancellor Joel Klein often lauds a small group of Harlem charter schools founded by former City Councilwoman Eva Moskowitz," writes Democracy Now! co-host Juan Gonzalez in the New York Daily News. "But few New Yorkers are aware of the access Moskowitz has to the chancellor or the special support he has bestowed on her program, whose four schools enroll just 1,300 of the city’s more than 1 million public school students."...
    Feb 25, 2010 | Story
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    Leading Education Scholar Diane Ravitch: No Child Left Behind Has Left US Schools with Legacy of "Institutionalized Fraud"

    As the Obama administration touts No Child Left Behind and the "Race to the Top" competition for school grants, we speak to leading education scholar and former Assistant Secretary of Education Diane Ravitch. She’s long been known as an advocate of No Child Left Behind, charter schools, standardized testing, and using the free market to improve schools. But she’s had a radical change of heart, as chronicled in her latest...
    Mar 05, 2010 | Story
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    Part II: Leading Education Scholar Diane Ravitch on "The Death and Life of the Great American School System"

    Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez interviewed Diane Ravitch in the Democracy Now! studios last week. You can see Part One of their conversation here. After the broadcast, they continued the conversation. [includes rush transcript]
    Mar 08, 2010 | Web Exclusive
  • Arne-duncan

    A Look at Arne Duncan's VIP List of Requests at Chicago Schools and the Effects of his Expansion of Charter Schools in Chicago

    When President Obama’s Education Secretary, Arne Duncan, was the head of Chicago’s Public Schools, his office kept a list of powerful, well-connected people who asked for help getting certain children into the city’s best public schools. The list — long kept confidential — was disclosed this week by the Chicago Tribune. We speak with the Chicago Tribune reporter who broke the story and with two Chicago organizers...
    Mar 26, 2010 | Story
  • Charter-school

    Juan Gonzalez: Big Banks Making a Bundle on New Construction as Schools Bear the Cost

    "Wealthy investors and major banks have been making windfall profits by using a little-known federal tax break to finance new charter-school construction," Democracy Now! co-host Juan Gonzalez write in the New York Daily News. "The program, the New Markets Tax Credit, is so lucrative that a lender who uses it can almost double his money in seven years." [includes rush transcript]
    May 07, 2010 | Story