Achievement Gap
Here Are the Real MVPs of National School Choice Week
It’s National School Choice Week (NSCW)! All week, we're celebrating those who work to provide available and accessible, high-quality options for students and families. Though the celebration is not...
School Choice
Finding the Right School for Your Kid Shouldn't Be a Privilege
This is National School Choice Week, coming at a time when the concept of choice has become one of the most polarizing in our educational discourse. This conflict is something I feel intensely in my...
Achievement Gap
Say What You Want About Charter Schools But the South Side of Chicago Needed Options
The hunt for a quality education has so many layers that one blog post will not be enough to explore them all. I came to understand this while looking for high school for my oldest child. In 2013,...
Achievement Gap
Do Not Close My Daughter's School
My daughter, Rileigh Jasper, is a first-grader at National Teachers Academy (NTA) in Chicago Public Schools. The school holds the district’s top rating, Level 1+. My husband and I, both career...
Chicago
This Chicago Program Is Making Sure Families Know Their School Options
When we policy wonks talk about school choice, mostly we talk about big-picture ways to make choice more available, like creating charter schools or offering vouchers or tax-credit scholarships to...
Chicago
Chicago's Schools Are 'Pretty Good,' But That's Not Good Enough
I have spent the last 15 years of my life committed to serving students across Chicago as a teacher and a leader. But today, I am writing as the mother of two beautiful daughters—two girls who are...