Jennifer Limas, TCSA Director of Grassroots Advocacy

Neighborhoods are defined by their communities. Attending a community meeting in Metz Recreation center earlier this week affirmed—as a long time Austin resident, what I already knew—the residents of East Austin are passionate and committed to their neighborhoods.

The community has shown a strong presence at numerous town hall meetings held over the past few months to discuss the potential collaboration between Austin ISD and IDEA Public Schools, an active member of TCSA.

As a person who has worked in Austin’s non-profit community for ten years, I know the challenges and history our East Austin communities have faced. Inequities in education have long plagued these areas and change is long overdue.

Change is not always initially celebrated; especially by a public who may still be uncertain about charter schools’ role in education. Directing the grassroots advocacy effort for TCSA, I’ve seen firsthand that although we have made significant gains, the charter movement has more work to do to increase public awareness of our schools.

Charters and traditional public schools both have a central role to play in public education, and parents and students want and need them both.

In communities across this state—like Dallas and in Houston—school districts are also beginning to partner with charters to both emulate some of the successful practices of charter schools and to joint venture a number of campuses.
 
Its time to embrace charters, work with them, and ensure the lessons learned are put to use for the betterment of ALL public schools.

Jennifer Limas
Director of Grassroots Advocacy

When a charter school raises the profile of their school in a community they strengthen the charter movement. Educating and engaging your supporters is not only critical to the success each individual school, it is imperative to the growth of the charter community.

Our schools are as diverse as the students we serve – we may differ in mission but we share challenges. As a community, our schools are often overlooked or misunderstood. Sometimes, we have to work extra to overcome those challenges.

Through my work with TCSA’s grassroots campaign, I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with many of our member schools as they work to educate their communities and equip their supporters to act on charter school issues.

Each school has their own approach in managing this work. Some schools, like East Austin College Prep respond to the needs of parents, students and community through several leadership development programs. The grassroots team and I have attended and presented at many of EAP’s trainings and meetings. The school’s two primary groups are – the Academia de Padres/Parent Academy, developed to increase parents capacity to support their students education path and the EAP’s Concilio de Padres/Parent Council, a parent organization dedicated to uniting board members, parents, staff and community to discuss issues effecting EACP and its surrounding neighborhood.

In San Antonio, KIPP Camino campus invited community members to hear directly from school leaders on their approach to education. Events like these provide a forum for the public to gain a greater understanding of this school’s innovative approach to education and the great opportunity it affords its students.

Down the road, at New Frontiers charter school, a ribbon cutting ceremony for their renovated facility gives the school an opportunity to invite local officials, State Board of Education members and neighbors into their school. The best way to understand and appreciate charter schools is to visit one.

TCSA applauds East Austin College Prep, KIPP San Antonio, New Frontiers and all other member schools who are proactively engaging their supporters and working to advance the movement.

During the interim leading to the next legislative session, TCSA is looking to help member schools develop campus advocacy action plans. We will meet with campus leadership and identify ways to increase your presence in the community.

To ensure our interim work continues, TCSA has recently launched a contribution drive in support of our grassroots programs. We ask you to support this effort and promote it on your social media sites.

We challenge our member schools to stay active in grassroots advocacy and strengthen our unified voice!

Jennifer D Limas
Director of Grassroots Advocacy, TCSA

Más de 390 escuelas chárter en Texas, y más de 120.000 estudiantes que atienden, han beneficiado de su ardura dedicación para la reforma de la educación pública. Nuestra red de defensores es ahora una de las más grandes del país. Con su ayuda, hemos afectado a las leyes que afectan a nuestras escuelas chárter públicas.

Necesitamos su ayuda para asegurar que este esfuerzo continúe y nuestra voz se haga más fuerte.

Éxitos del año pasado fueron posibles gracias a una beca filantrópica que se expira en noviembre. Es fundamental que se utilice el ínterin legislativo de base para continuar la programación regional para producir mejores resultados en el próximo período legislativo. Tuvimos progresos en la sesión anterior, pero todavía se necesita terminar bastante trabajo para traer las reformas políticas pro-chárter para poder ayudar a la mayoría de los estudiantes posibles de Texas.

TCSA está buscando hacia los defensores de chárters para que apoyen y mantengan nuestro programa de “grassroots” para asegurar que el movimiento de escuelas chárter de Texas fortalezca antes de la próxima sesión legislativa.

Durante la última sesión legislativa TCSA fue capaz de:
•    Ayudar a asegurar la victoria legislativa más grande para las escuelas chárter en más de una década. Después de tantos años luchando para obtener fondos para construcción y renovaciones, muchas escuelas chárter podrán recibir financiación estatal igual que todas las escuelas públicas.
•    Organizar y asistir a más de 270 eventos en las escuelas y visitar a más de 60 legisladores del estado;
•    Entregar a más de 43.000 tarjetas postales para informar a los legisladores acerca de sus prioridades para las escuelas chárter;
•    Realizar ralis de escuelas chárter, en febrero y mayo en la Capital con más de 2.800 asistentes;
•    Enviar a más de 250 acciones de alerta informando le cuando necesita contactar a su legislador sobre selecta legislación.

Cada contribución nos ayuda a crecer. Dona ahora y conéctese a nuestra red de Comunidades Unidas. Su contribución le da acceso a lo siguiente:
•    Eventos regionales para defensores de “grassroots”
•    TCSA E-boletín
•    Ralis en la capital en 2012
•    Oportunidades en su área para tomar un papel activo en el movimiento

La  Asociación de Escuelas Chárter de Texas es una organización sin fines de lucro 501 (c) 3 y una organización de caridad, su donación es 100% deducible de impuestos.

Ayúdenlos a seguir trabajando para los 120.000 estudiantes, 390 escuelas y miles de personas que se encuentran en las listas de espera de las escuelas chárter.

Juntos, verdaderamente somos una Comunidad Unida.

Over 390 Texas charter schools, and over 120,000 students they serve, have benefited from your passion to reform public education. Our advocate network is now one of the largest in the country. With your help, we have affected laws that impact our public charter schools.

We need your help to ensure that this effort continues and our voice grows louder.

Last year’s successes were made possible by a philanthropic grant that expires in November. It is critical that we use the legislative interim to continue grassroots regional programming to produce greater results in the coming legislative term. We made progress last session, but there is lots of work left to be done to bring pro-charter policy reforms to help the most Texas students possible.

TCSA is looking to charter advocates to support and maintain our grassroots advocacy program to ensure that the Texas charter school movement strengthens before the next legislative session.

During the last legislative session TCSA was able to:
•    Help secure the biggest legislative win for charter schools in more than a decade. After years struggling to secure funding for construction and renovations, many charters will now be able to receive state backed financing just like all other public schools;
•    Host and attend over 270 campus events and visit over 60 state lawmakers;
•   Deliver over 43,000 postcards informing lawmakers about your charter school priorities;
•    Hold charter school rallies in both February and May at the state Capitol with over 2,800 total attendees;
•   Send over 250 action alerts informing you when to contact your legislator regarding select legislation.

Every contribution helps us grow. Donate now and get connected to our Communities United network. Your contribution gives you access to the following:
•    Regional Grassroots Advocacy Events
•    TCSA E-Newsletter
•    2012 State Capitol Rallies
•    Opportunities in your area to take an active role in the movement

The Texas Charter Schools Association is a nonprofit 501(c)3 charitable organization; your donation is 100% tax deductible.

Help us keep working for 120,000 students, 390 schools and thousands on charter school waiting lists.

Together we are truly Communities United.

On my way to Austin I thought about how I felt before finding my charter school-lost and frustrated. I was determined to ensure that my children exceeded the academic goals my husband and I had set for them. I desperately searched for schools that would provide a quality education for my children.

I submitted application after application to transfer my children out of our poor performing neighborhood school. Without the money to enroll them into a private school we were left frustrated. After many prayers later, a family friend told us about our local charter schools. We found our hope in Williams Preparatory, an Uplift Education charter school in Dallas.

I have been amazed by the learning environment my children are now in–but my children are the lucky ones. There are so many more children waiting to get into Williams Prep. Because of that, I jumped at the chance to attend the Charter Parent Rally at the Capitol.

On the bus ride to Austin, the journey that led my family to our charter school ran through my mind.

When I got off the bus and walked toward the Capitol I was filled with pride. I was proud to support Williams Preparatory and proud to rally for the thousands of families looking for something better for their children.

The rally was a great experience that was filled with emotion. As I looked around the crowd of over a thousand parents from all over the state, I felt that we were one. One voice fighting for the schools that provide our children with a chance at a bright future.

On the way back to Dallas, I couldn’t help but reflect on those parents who also feel the hunger for their children’s success and are unsatisfied with their neighborhood school. I hope that the presence we made at the Capitol will remind our representatives that our charter schools represent hope and strong futures.

Our charter school community is waiting for Superman–right now we look to our legislators to be that hero. We look to them to protect and expand our right to find quality public education for our children.

Monica Deantes, Williams Preparatory Parent

In 2012, more than 73,692 students will drop out of high school based on Texas A&M projections. These dropouts will cost Texas up to $10.7 billion over their lifetimes.  As a state, we cannot afford these costs or continue to ignore the dropout crisis.

To combat this crisis, seven charter districts in Texas have opened schools dedicated to helping students that have dropped out of traditional public schools or are at risk of dropping out.

In 1999, ResponsiveEd began opening Premier High Schools to help students who are pregnant, homeless, addicted to drugs or work full-time.  For many students, Premier High School is their last chance to get a diploma.

In the last 12 years, more than 5,000 Premier students have earned a high school diploma.  We are proud of these graduates. And, we want to do more.

However, Texas unintentionally penalizes Premier High School and other dropout recovery charter schools for educating these students.

On Tuesday, the Texas House Public Education Committee debated HB 1311 by Rep. Mark Shelton. The bill would eliminate many disincentives that prevent Premier High Schools from serving a larger number of dropouts.

Rep. Shelton’s bill creates a separate designation for “Dropout Reduction Charter High Schools,” that will allow schools, which have proven themselves academically successful and fiscally accountable to expand.

This bill is desperately needed. For many years, legislative and media discussions have focused on early-intervention, such as a focus on retaining middle school students, to prevent dropouts.  While this effort is admirable, we cannot afford to abandon those who have already dropped out and wish to re-engage and return to school.

HB 1311 will allow ResponsiveEd to open more high-quality Premier High School campuses across the state.

Charles Cook, Chief Executive Officer, Responsive Education Solutions