An opinion editorial that appeared in Houston earlier this month lays out the possibilities for the Choose to Succeed movement:
As chairman of the Brackenridge Foundation, a small philanthropy focused on education, Victoria Rico is trying to persuade donors to pool their resources to bring four of the nation’s top-performing charter school management organizations to San Antonio. If she succeeds and the charter management organizations (CMOs) win approval from the State Board of Education to operate in the state, her city will enjoy the strongest lineup of public charter schools in the nation. . . .
Given startup funds, SBOE approval and interest from parents, these CMOs would open 145 schools and serve 80,000 students by 2027—25 percent of the number now enrolled in San Antonio’s district schools. If these students fared as the CMOs’ other students have fared, college graduation rates in San Antonio would more than double. The boon would be huge: nothing beats poverty like a college education. . . .
Henry Cisneros calls the plan “the best I’ve seen in education, with the most promise in decades.” Former San Antonio Mayor Phil Hardberger calls the CMOs “an unprecedented educational all-star team that will change lives if we can get them here.” KIPP San Antonio founder Mark Larson hails his would-be competitors as much-needed collaborators.
“Bid to expand charter schools could boost programs’ quality”, Shep Barbash, Houston Chronicle, October 5, 2012.
Barbash is referring to these four schools: Great Hearts Academies, BASIS Schools, Carpe Diem Schools, and Rocketship Education. They would join IDEA Public Schools and KIPP: San Antonio, which already have a presence in San Antonio.
