Luke Andraka, an 8th grader from Chesapeake Science Point (CSP) public charter school wanted to know why parts of the river habitat where he likes to kayak were turning an unnatural shade red. After researching the matter, he learned the cause was acid-mine drainage, and that prompted his next question: how do we stop it? It was the beginning of Andraka’s award-winning science fair project, The Effectiveness of Limestone Aggregates to Mitigate Acid-Mine Drainage, which took first place at the 2007 Regional Science Fair for Anne Arundel and Queen Anne counties last March.

The Richland Collegiate High School of Mathematics, Science, and Engineering (RCHS) at Richland College was honored in September 2008 with the “Tech Titan of the Future” Award.  The school was honored at the Richardson Chamber of Commerce’s Metroplex Technology Business Council (MTBC) annual Gala. The award recognizes higher education institutions that foster and support students to choose careers in engineering and tech-related fields.

My name is Alisha Honkanen. I’m 16 years old and recently began attending Denmark Empowerment Charter School (DECS). I can say with all honesty that if it wasn’t for DECS I probably would still be causing problems and thinking of dropping out. Before I came to DECS, I was a completely unreasonable student. I skipped classes, refused to do homework, and would disregard authority every chance I got. I was failing almost all of my classes and suffering both emotionally and academically. After I started attending DECS, I changed.

Although most people know me primarily as an athlete, those closest to me know that I grew up in a home where my mom placed academic success far above the accolades of athletics.

Mueller Charter School in Chula Vista, California has, for the ninth year in a row, showed positive gains on the state's rigorous California Standards Test.

Mueller is located 5 miles from the border to Tijuana. 95% of the students are Latino, 60% are learning English as a second language, and 70% qualify for free or reduced lunch. Nevertheless, we have never missed an AYP goal, never been in Program Improvement. Further, we have grown by over 280 points on the Academic Performance Index.

As appeared in the New York Daily News, July 29, 2008.
BY STACY GAUTHIER

Can we finally admit charter schools in New York City are no longer an experiment but a valuable institution that works for poor and predominantly minority children and their families? This year, NYC charter schools performed exceptionally well throughout grades 3 to 8 on both the state English Language Arts and Mathematics examinations, widely outperforming their host districts and the entire city average in a vast majority of instances.

Every year the State Department of Education in Tennessee in conjunction with the United States Department of Education awards the top Title I school in the state. This is based on prior year information, which results in a slight delay from performance to recognition.

When I first heard about the concept of charter schools, I could never understand what truly made them different from the traditional public school setting.  It was only when I joined the team of a Baltimore City public charter school that I saw, felt, and internalized the difference.  I have the pleasure of serving the students at KIPP Ujima Village Academy in Baltimore, Maryland.  At KIPP, we believe it is our responsibility to lead and support our students to and through college.

“I just hope we find a university that will accept your credits,” was my thought when members of the first graduating class of the Richland Collegiate High School of Mathematics, Science, and Engineering approached me, their Deputy Superintendent, with the challenge: “If we get a million dollars in scholarship offers, can we shave your head?” This happened in March 2007 as RCHS students were completing their first year of classes.

I had no choice but to respond with a hearty “Sure!”

Detroit, MI— Detroit Edison Public School Academy (DEPSA) joined an elite group of schools recently when it was named a Blue Ribbon Exemplary School by the Michigan Department of Education. DEPSA, one of 23 schools in the state to be awarded the prestigious honor this year, is also the first charter school recipient in the state program’s 24-year history.

For the fourth straight year Georgia charter schools have led the way in making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) under the No Child Left Behind Act.

For the 2005-06 school year, 90% of Georgia’s charter schools made AYP according to figures released by the Georgia Department of Education today. This represents a 3% increase over the percentage of charter schools that made AYP in 2004-05 and is 11% better than the overall 2005-06 state AYP rate of 79%. The percent of charter schools making AYP has increased in each of the four years that AYP has been measured.