Terry Ryan

Now is the time to focus on the trends shaping education in Idaho, and a great place to start building a funding system that will make it more likely our children get the education they deserve.

Idaho Education News reported the Gem State received $21.6 million in federal dollars to open public charter schools. Of that amount, $2.3 million went to charter schools that failed — only 10 percent. The other 90 percent helped launch some of Idaho’s top performing charters.

Survey results are another call for Idaho’s charter school sector and its allies to do more to grow and expand schools that serve larger numbers of economically disadvantaged and minority students.

New money is important for Idaho’s schools. But so too is encouraging educators to try new things for the benefit of students. Idaho’s lawmakers got the balance right this legislative session.

Idahoans want great schools for all kids and understand there is more work to be done to get there.

But overcoming the challenges of poverty to improve student performance for all students requires doing things differently. A new report highlights ways to reverse the decline of the American family, to reconnect struggling families to jobs that offer middle-class opportunities, and ideas for improving schools and educational opportunities.

School choice holds that some schools may lose market share simply because the product no longer works well for families and students, or that families have identified better options for their children.

Educators across the country are transforming the way education and learning are delivered to rural students and in the process revitalizing their communities. Idaho is well positioned to build on these efforts if it continues to embrace innovative uses of technology and alternative governance structures like chartering.

Changes to state law should make it easier for charter schools to get access to private lending for new school growth, but charters have struggled to serve more students (diverse and otherwise) because they lack the facilities to get it done.

The federal Charter Schools Program is the only federal funding source that supports the opening of new charter schools, and the charter school community is counting on Idaho’s Congressional delegation to support the expansion of charter schools in Idaho.