WASHINGTON, D.C.- The U.S. Senate has passed a resolution in honor of the 15th annual National Charter Schools Week (May 4 May 10, 2014). The resolution was introduced by Senators Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and passed the Senate by unanimous consent.
S. Res. 438 states:
The Senate congratulations the students, families, teachers, and administrators of charter schools across the United States for their ongoing contributions to education; their impressive strides in closing the academic achievement gap in schools in the United States, particularly schools with some of the most disadvantaged students in both rural and urban communities; and improving and strengthening the public school system in the United States.
[The Senate] supports the ideals and goals of the 15th annual National Charter Schools Week, a week-long celebration to be held the week of May 4 through May 10, 2014, in communities throughout the United States; and encourages the people of the United States to hold appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities during National Charter Schools Week to demonstrate support for charter schools.
Click here to read the full resolution. For more information about National Charter Schools Week, please visit publiccharters.org/charterschoolsweek.
About Public Charter Schools
Public charter schools are independent, public, and tuition-free schools that are given the freedom to be more innovative while being held accountable for advancing student achievement. Since 2010, all but one independent research study has found that students in charter schools do better in school than their traditional school peers. For example, one study by the Center for Research on Education Outcomes at Stanford University found that charter schools do a better job teaching low income students, minority students, and students who are still learning English than traditional schools. Separate studies by the Center for Reinventing Public Education and Mathematica Policy Research have found that charter school students are more likely to graduate from high school, go on to college, stay in college and have higher earnings in early adulthood.
About the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools
The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools is the leading national nonprofit organization committed to advancing the public charter school movement. Our mission is to lead public education to unprecedented levels of academic achievement by fostering a strong charter sector. For more information, please visit our website at www.publiccharters.org.
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