D.C. Public Schools and the Public Charter School Board have traditionally operated in silos, each pursuing its unique mission.
DCPS maintains a system of neighborhood schools with seats guaranteed to anyone within prescribed boundaries. The PCSB oversees schools open to all comers citywide. Decisions about openings, closings, program offerings and facilities have, more often than not, been made in isolation.
Last week’s IFF report on school capacity is the latest sign that the silos are about to come down. Among its recommendations for improving education in the city’s most underserved neighborhoods is “a sustained and coordinated effort” between 123-school public system and the community of 53 publicly funded, independently operated schools. The report, which divides all public and public charter schools into quartiles based on test score trends, urges the city to invest in middle-of-the-pack, “Tier 2” schools to make them more effective. But it also sees charters playing a key role in some of the ten “neighborhood clusters” --most of them south and east of the Anacostia River--identified as most in need of better education options. READ MORE CLICK HERE.
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