Charter Schools: Strengthening Accountability in Public Education

In our Dear New Leaders Series, we’re educating elected officials, policymakers, and the general public on critical topics in public education. In this episode of Get Schooled on Public Education, we discuss accountability in charter schools and the vital role of authorizers. The District of Columbia Public Charter School Board (DC PCSB) is the sole authorizer of all public charter schools in Washington D.C. Hear directly from the DC PCSBs’ Director of Data and Accountability, Kirsten J. Floyd and Chief School Performance Officer, Melodi Sampson, as well as the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools’ Senior Director of Policy, Katie Burke.

Featured Guest

• Kirsten J. Floyd, Director of Data and Accountability, DC Public Charter School Board
• Melodi Sampson, Chief School Performance Officer, DC Public Charter School Board
• Katie Burke, Senior Director, Policy, National Alliance’s for Public Charter Schools

Key Takeaways

• Charter schools are public schools with increased autonomy to innovate and meet students' needs. In exchange, they are held accountable for meeting performance expectations set by their authorizers.
• Authorizers oversee academic, financial, and operational performance through charter agreements, which outline specific goals and accountability measures.
• Charter schools are required to make key information, such as budgets, tax forms, and annual reports publicly available. This transparency enables families and the public to understand school performance and operations.
• Effective legislation should empower local decision-makers to adapt to unique contexts to support tailored solutions that meet the diverse needs of students and communities.

Quotes

• Kirsten J. Floyd, Director of Data and Accountability, DC Public Charter School Board
  • “In a school's charter agreement, there are specific charter goals and academic achievement expectations that are outlined that tell how they will show their impact on student academic outcomes.”
• Melodi Sampson, Chief School Performance Officer, DC Public Charter School Board
  • “Charter school authorizers are really critical in terms of holding schools accountable, and we do this by doing public reporting on school performance on an annual basis, even throughout a school year.”
• Katie Burke, Senior Director of Policy, National Alliance’s for Public Charter Schools
  • "Charter schools are public schools that are independently operated, which means they have the autonomy to meet the needs of their students.”

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction
01:04 - Charter Schools: Autonomy in Public Education
03:27 - Tools for Oversight: Compliance, Audits, and Financial Accountability
07:34 - Tailoring Education Policies through Local Decision-Making
08:17 - Outro