Dive Brief:
- A plan backed by the Broad Foundation and others, detailed in a June report obtained by the Los Angeles Times, would more than triple Los Angeles' charter school enrollment in the next eight years.
- Currently, Los Angeles runs the largest charter program in the country, and 16% of the district’s students attend charter schools.
- The report indicates that the plan would require $490 million and involve building 260 more charter schools to provide 130,000 seats for students.
Dive Insight:
Charter expansions in Los Angeles and elsewhere have proved controversial and prompted considerable pushback from local communities. And the results have been mixed. By many measures, New Orleans students are performing better than they did before the entire district was turned over to charters, but many say that doesn't capture the whole picture.
In Los Angeles, the schools have been popular with parents. But the intended charter expansion also prompted protests from teachers outside the Broad Museum, funded by the Broad Foundation, which has backed current expansion efforts and would likely be involved with further ones. The report details a plan to build community support through grassroots organizing and parent engagement.