It’s Time for Chicago and Its Teachers Union to Collaborate and Win for Kids

After 11 days on the picket line, Chicago public school teachers are back at work and there’s plenty of chest-beating and navel-gazing underway.  Speculation is…

She Has a Plan for Everything, So Where Is Elizabeth Warren’s Plan for K-12 Education?

I love a woman with a plan! And, Senator Warren, it seems like you have a plan for just about everything. There are currently 50…

Time for Democrats to Recognize the Progressive Roots of Charter Schools

Listening to the rhetoric of Democratic presidential candidates, one would think charter schools were a Republican initiative opposed by all progressives. Bernie Sanders calls for a…

This Fight Isn’t About Charter Schools, It’s About Justice for Our Students

“We’re in the fight of our lives,” according to a number of chartered public school educators with whom I met at the recent National Alliance…

Yes, You Can Have a Great First Year of Teaching, Just Ask Chicago’s Asia-Ana Williams

Last year, rookie English teacher Asia-Ana Williams became the poster child for Opportunity Schools, a Chicago Public Schools (CPS) effort to match teacher talent with…

Teachers, I Love You. But Sometimes Your Unions Are Full of It.

Ironically, I spent part of my Labor Day arguing with unionized teachers on social media. Yep, I sure did. Because every time I make an…

It’s OK, You Can Teach For America

In 2013, Sandra Korn, then a senior at Harvard and a contributor to the student newspaper The Crimson, wrote an article telling her peers “Don’t…

There’s Room in the NAACP to Talk About the Importance of School Choice for Black Parents

I was recently the subject of a hit piece in the Huffington Post, which tried to connect me to the Koch brothers because, as a…

Do I Really Have to Defend Civil Rights Activists From the NAACP?

For months, I’ve struggled internally with blasting the NAACP for its stance on charter schools. To chastise an advocacy organization that has been instrumental in…

NAACP: Don’t Make Black Kids the New ‘Cotton’ That Funds Failing Public Schools

Because we want our children and grandchildren to be ready for college, NAACP members like me have chosen tuition-free public charter schools. But instead of…