Great Public Schools Now
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| Great Public Schools Now | |
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| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Los Angeles, California |
| Type: | Nonprofit organization |
| Top official: | Myrna Castrejón, Executive Director |
| Founder(s): | The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation |
| Year founded: | 2015 |
| Website: | Official website |
Great Public Schools Now (GPSN) is a nonprofit organization founded in 2015 with the aim of providing support for the expansion of charter schools in the Los Angeles metro area.[1] The organization was developed by The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, a nonprofit that seeks to support "the people, programs and institutions that are improving the human mind, body and spirit"—particularly in the areas of art, science, and education.[2][3]
Mission
According to Great Public Schools Now, the group's mission is as follows:[1]
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Great Public Schools Now is a California not-for-profit organization dedicated to ensuring all Los Angeles students receive a high-quality education by accelerating the growth of high-quality public schools. Today, more than 160,000 students in Los Angeles and surrounding cities attend schools that are failing to provide them with a quality education. Our goal is to help as many students as possible get the education they want, need and deserve by replicating successful public schools, such as charter, magnet, pilot, and Partnership schools, in high-poverty areas of Greater Los Angeles.[4] |
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Background
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| Education policy in the U.S. |
| Public education in the U.S. |
| School choice in the U.S. |
| Charter schools in the U.S. |
| Higher education in the U.S. |
| Glossary of education terms |
| Education statistics |
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In November 2015, The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation and other supporters of expanding charter schools in the Los Angeles metro area formed Great Public Schools Now (GPSN). GPSN, according to the Los Angeles Times, took over a proposal, first drafted by the Broad Foundation, that would have raised "$490 million to enroll half the students in the L.A. Unified School District over the next eight years" into charter schools.[5] Statements from GPSN noted that not all schools developed by the organization would strictly be charter schools; some such schools, they said, would be modeled off of successful L.A. Unified schools. Board chairman for GPSN, William E.B. Siart, stated that the organization's goal is "replicating and accelerating the development of public schools … that have proven to be successful for kids in traditionally underperforming schools."[5]
Charter schools in California
- See also: Charter schools in California
Charter schools in California are public schools operated independently of public school systems, either by nonprofit or for-profit organizations. Although they are largely publicly funded, charter schools are exempt from many of the requirements imposed by state and local boards of education regarding hiring and curriculum.
As public schools, charter schools cannot charge tuition or impose special entrance requirements; students are usually admitted through a lottery process if demand exceeds the number of spaces available in a school. Charter schools generally receive a percentage of the per-pupil funds from the state and local school districts for operational costs based on enrollment. In most states, charter schools do not receive funds for facilities or start-up costs; they must rely to some extent on private donations. The federal government also provides revenues through special grants. As of March 2017, 44 states and the District of Columbia had approved legislation authorizing the creation of public charter schools. Six states had not.
Work
Grants
In June 2016, GPSN announced its first grant recipients. The group stated that the grants will help 160,000 students in Los Angeles. Heart of Los Angeles, an enrichment program, received $500,000, Equitas Academy Charter Schools received $2 million to help in expanding its schools that serve low-income areas, and Teach for America, a teacher training program, received $2 million to train and support 130 college students who will become teachers, some in the L.A. Unified district and others at area charter schools.[6]
Leadership
In January 2016, Myrna Castrejón was appointed executive director for GPSN. Castrejón was a senior lobbyist and political strategist for the California Charter Schools Association; she was hired in response to the L.A. Unified Board of Education's opposition to GPSN's proposals for expanding charter schools in January 2016.[3]
Below is the list of the GPSN board:[7]
- William E.B. Siart, Chairman
- Maria Casillas
- Yolie Flores
- Allison Keller
- Gregory McGinity
- Virgil Roberts
- Mark Sternberg
Noteworthy events
Charter school expansion debate
In late November 2015, the L.A. Unified Board of Education opposed the plan proposed by GPSN to expand charter schools in the Los Angeles area. Concerns among board members included the potential threat charters posed to the "solvency" of L.A. Unified and the depletion of resources for students with more needs. At the same time, other opponents criticized the secrecy of the Broad Foundation's proposal, which they believed could have a negative financial impact on L.A. Unified.[5]
Subsequently, in January 2016, the L.A. Unified Board of Education proposed that the charter school proposal be an inclusive effort in that the two initiatives—charter schools and "traditional" schools—work together to create new charters and improve existing public schools at the same time. GPSN had also not been able to raise the proposed $490 million it originally thought it would. According to the Los Angeles Times, the original plan received criticism from teachers unions and community leaders, prompting the proposal change from both the L.A. Unified Board of Education and GPSN.[8] The school board, however, voted against GPSN's proposal.[3] The proposal was finally modified, and GPSN's current goal is to "support any kind of successful school, including those in L.A. Unified."[6]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Great Public Schools Now'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Charter schools
- Teach for America
- Los Angeles Unified School District, California
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Great Public Schools Now, "About GPSN," accessed July 6, 2016
- ↑ The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, "About Us," accessed July 6, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 LA School Report, "Post navigation Great Public Schools Now names Castrejón executive director," January 14, 2016
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Los Angeles Times, "Nonprofit is formed to advance charter-school plan in Los Angeles area," November 18, 2015
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedlaunch - ↑ GPSN, "Board of Directors," accessed July 6, 2016
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Editorial A better charter-school initiative," January 16, 2016
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