Evers Awards $3.3 Million in Federal Charter School Grants (WI)
August 5, 2010
State Superintendent Tony Evers announced $3.3 million in federal charter school grants for implementation activities during the 2010-11 school year.
“These grants will help school districts create the next generation of quality charter schools that provide innovative, rigorous, and relevant instruction to our students, connecting them with real-world experiences,” he said. “These charter school implementation grants will help districts get their charter schools up and running.”
Wisconsin has solid experience in supporting charter schools and securing federal funding to expand charter schools throughout the state. In 2005, the Department of Public Instruction was awarded a $52 million, three-year federal competitive grant. Then in 2009, Wisconsin won a five-year grant worth $85,951,778 to support quality charter schools. The current allocations for first-year implementation and implementation renewal grants total $3,297,162. Charter school planning grants and dissemination grants, also from the state’s 2009 five-year federal grant, will be announced later in August. For the 2010-11 school year, the department is awarding:
• 14 implementation grants, totaling $2,850,000, for first-year operations of new charter schools; and
• 3 implementation renewal grants, totaling $447,162, for charter schools in the second year of operation.
“We continue to support grants for charter schools that provide enhanced educational opportunities for Wisconsin students ,” Evers said. “We must continue investing in innovation so that all students graduate with the knowledge and skills they need to be successful, whether they continue their education or enter the workforce.”
Charter schools are public schools that are accountable to their authorizing agency for performance measures included in the charter contract. Charter schools must employ licensed teachers, involve parents, administer statewide tests, and comply with federal regulations that govern all public schools. Under state law, school districts can authorize an unlimited number of charter schools. In addition, the City of Milwaukee, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee Area Technical College, and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, have authority to charter schools. There were 206 charter schools operating in Wisconsin during the 2009-10 school year, serving 36,100 students.