In The News

Meeting the Potential of a Virtual Education

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Lessons From Operators Making Online Schooling Work When the first virtual school began more than 20 years ago, it offered an incredible promise: Suddenly, students could get access to a great education and a diversity of courses regardless of place or time. They could have flexibility to “attend” school around medical appointments, sports practices, or whatever else life threw at…

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The Power of Place: New School Fellows Create McCall Community School

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Our Idaho New School Fellows are a growing and varied group of individuals who are creating innovative schools to prepare students to thrive in our rapidly-changing world. Meet Dr. Jenny Schon and Patrick Berg; two veteran educators who share a vision of a personalized, community-centered school that reflects the values of their rural Idaho town. McCall is a small mountain…

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$4 Million in Federal Funds Awarded to Five Idaho Public Charter Schools

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Press Release Five Idaho public charter schools have been awarded $800,000 each in federal funds in a first round of funding aimed at increasing the number of new, high-quality charter school seats for the Idaho students who need them most. The grants will allow the five schools to add a total of 2,484 new seats in schools for students from…

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The ABCs of Idaho Education Building Funding

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by Sharon Fisher, Idaho Business Review Constructing education buildings can be challenging enough, but funding them in Idaho can be even more difficult. While there are several methods districts can consider, none of them is particularly easy. Impact fees It might seem logical to have a developer contribute to the cost of constructing a new public school building. After all,…

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Idaho Policy Institute Awarded Contract to Evaluate Public Charter Schools

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by Cienna Madrid Boise State University’s Idaho Policy Institute (IPI), housed within the School of Public Service, was awarded $212,229 to serve as an independent, third-party evaluator for the Idaho Communities of Excellence program, a charter school education organization funded by a federal charter schools program grant. The five-year grant was awarded by Bluum, a non-profit organization committed to expanding…

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School Funding Formula Hijinks

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By Terry Ryan, originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org The Idaho Public School Funding Formula Committee (a group of state lawmakers, policy makers and education leaders) has spent the last three years convening multiple hearings in Boise and across the state to learn from Idaho educators, school board members, citizens, taxpayers, parents and outside experts what is working and what isn’t working…

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Boise-Based Education Nonprofit Bluum Awarded $17.1 Million in Federal Funds to Expand and Grow High-Performing Public Charter Schools

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PRESS RELEASE: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Terry Ryan Cell: 202-341-4575 Email: tryan@bluum.org BOISE-BASED EDUCATION NONPROFIT BLUUM AWARDED $17.1 MILLION IN FEDERAL FUNDS TO EXPAND AND GROW HIGH-PERFORMING PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS The Idaho nonprofit Bluum has been awarded a $17.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Charter Schools Program (CSP). Bluum, a Boise-based statewide nonprofit charter school support entity,…

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Thousands wait for charter school seats

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Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on September 24, 2018 Thousands of children are waiting for a chance to enroll in one of Idaho’s charter schools. For some parents, getting in feels a little like winning the lottery. “We got lucky,” said Richard Petrus, whose granddaughter Audrey was one of 34 kindergarteners randomly selected to attend Idaho Falls charter Alturas International Academy.…

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North Idaho STEM Charter Academy

U.S. Asst. Secretary for Planning, Evaluation & Policy Development tours innovative Idaho school

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North Idaho STEM Charter Academy is one of the state’s highest performing schools; in addition to a 100% college acceptance rate, their inaugural graduating class also designed and built a satellite. As a public charter school, they have the freedom to innovate, and in turn share their best practices for success with other educators and schools. In a recent visit…

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When it comes to public charter schools, districts just say no

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By Terry Ryan, originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org “Why aren’t more school districts in Idaho working with charter schools,” I was asked by a friend recently. This seemed especially odd as 14 of the 44 schools (32 percent) on the state’s list of top performing high schools were public charter schools. The most common way for school districts and public charter…

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