Posts from January 2016
Helping Charter Schools Find Student Success Beyond Academics
We recognize the importance of education, but what many may not recognize is the importance of certain skills and habits that are not commonly taught in today’s education system. In an era of emphasis on common standards and standardized testing, core subject areas can become the sole focus of a child’s daily instruction. To succeed in life, however, students need more than just book smarts. They also need instruction in social-emotional…
Don’t Let Them Tell You Where to Send Your Child for School
Just letting somebody tell you where to take your kids to school is not acceptable. I learned that lesson the hard way. In 2008, Chicago…
Making the Right Choice for My Son’s School
I homeschooled my son Joseph until he was 4 years old. Then I found Legacy Charter School, just by walking down the street. If I hadn’t…
Learning From a Charter School Turnaround in Memphis
Sometimes the best way to get the hang something tricky is to learn from others’ experiences. As National School Choice Week wraps up, I recommend…
VIDEO: Zip Code School Assignment Didn’t Work Out for Me
Attending a good school in this country is a luxury, and that is wrong. I wasn’t one of the lucky ones, not until I found…
How a Charter School Saved Us From a Nightmare With Our Son
Until a month before kindergarten, our son Emery was on track in every way for a successful school year. He had been healthy for four…
How My School Helped Me Get Straight A’s, Lose Weight, and Forgive My Drug-Addict Birth Mom
Perspectives Charter School isn’t just a school for me. It has given me the foundation to open up my heart. It turned me into a…
Student Praise for a Chicago High School Where Everybody Knows Your Name
When you go to school, you should never feel like just another seat in the class. Everyone in the school should know you by name—not just the teachers, but the engineer and the lunch ladies, too. Having school choice helped me find a place where that could happen. When my older sister was looking for a middle school, my mom found Perspectives Charter Schools at a school fair. After a visit to their Rodney D. Joslin campus, located just south…
Thank You, Mom and School Choice, for Saving Me From Ninth Grade
From preschool till my freshman year of high school, my grandma and I would commute about 30-40 minutes each day to a different city so I would be able to attend better schools. This is where I learned and practiced my Spanish, as we listened to Spanish radio: "El Cucuy de la mañana." In middle school, I was a Five Semester Scholar, which meant I started the second semester of sixth grade with a GPA of 3.7 or above, but I managed to keep…
The Hardest Part of My Job Is Telling Students They Aren’t Prepared
I teach English at my local community college, which puts me in constant contact with students of every age and circumstance who are hoping that…
