As demonstrators gathered outside, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on April 30, 2025, about whether Oklahoma can operate the nation’s first faith-based charter school. St. Isidore of Seville would be a virtual, K-12 school run by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa. Charters are typically public schools of choice, funded by taxpayer […] … learn more→
Tag Archives: Charter schools
Is a faith-based charter school a threat to religious freedom, or a necessity to uphold it? The weighty decision lies with the Supreme Court
Can a charter school be religious? The Supreme Court decision about St. Isidore, a Catholic school in Oklahoma, could redraw lines around church and state in education
The Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether Oklahoma can open St. Isidore: an online Roman Catholic charter school named after the patron saint of the internet. If affirmed, the school would be the nation’s first faith-based charter – a sea change in education law, expanding the boundaries of government aid to faith-based schools. On Jan. 24, 2025, the justices […] … learn more→
Why charter schools are not as ‘public’ as they claim to be
Proponents of charter schools insist that they are public schools “open to all students.” But the truth is more nuanced. As an education policy researcher – and as author of a new book about charter schools I wrote with fellow researcher Wagma Mommandi – I have discovered that charter schools are not as accessible to the public as they are often […] … learn more→
I spent a year and a half at a ‘no-excuses’ charter school – this is what I saw
Charter schools are 30 years old as of 2021, and the contentious debate about their merits and place in American society continues. To better understand what happens at charter schools – and as a sociologist who focuses on education – I spent a year and a half at a particular type of urban charter school that takes a “no-excuses” approach toward education. My […] … learn more→
Charter schools: What you need to know about their anticipated growth in Alberta
In Alberta, the once-radical idea of charter schools, placed largely on the back burner for the past two decades, has been brought back to the fore under Premier Jason Kenney’s United Conservative Party (UCP). The party’s Choice in Education Act will come into force Sept. 1, after the government passed it June 24. Under the new act, individuals […] … learn more→
Charter schools exploit lucrative loophole that would be easy to close
While critics charge that charter schools are siphoning money away from public schools, a more fundamental issue frequently flies under the radar: the questionable business practices that allow people who own and run charter schools to make large profits. Charter school supporters are reluctant to acknowledge, much less stop, these practices. Given that charter schools are growing rapidly – from 1 […] … learn more→
