TIME Magazine Agrees Good Charters Aren't Flukes

In the wake of "Waiting for Superman," there's been a feeling of desperation that charter schools are the only answer, they are nearly impossible to get into, and there are no plans to change. From TIME: "What was surprising was how little interest there was in figuring out what can be learned from the 17% and how to create more schools like them. Instead, critics wrote them off as flukes or cherrypickers and rushed to pronounce the entire charter experiment a failure." The message that was missed in "Waiting for Superman" is that there are a lot of successful "bright spot" schools (as STC calls them) in low income areas around the country that are expanding enrollment and mentoring other schools to help them bridge the achievement gap as well. And the hook? They aren't all charter. STC is a perfect representation of that. In the last two years 85% of member schools report test scores exceeding 75% at grade level or above and one third exceed 90% (based on state or national assessment tests). The average college acceptance rate at STC high schools (that represent 20% of the network) is an impressive 97.2%. These proven results provide assurance that member schools are narrowing the Achievement Gap. And STC is growing. We have initiatives in Detroit and Milwaukee and Cleveland in place to grow seats of quality education by the thousands. Change is happening now, and "Superman" is here in the form of hard working school leaders and courageous kids. Photo: From the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel A student from our member school Milwaukee College Prep was photographed in the Journal Sentinel after a "Waiting for Superman" screening. Caption: "Stephawn Easley, 7, wears a Milwaukee College Prep "Superman" T-shirt as he takes photographs of his mother, Cherise Easley, who is principal of the school and was a member of the discussion panel. Easley said her school was an example of success in improving performance in low-income areas."