1. The speaker attended a charter school conference and learned that charter schools are public schools exempt from some state rules that allow innovation, and President Obama supports expanding charter schools. 2. Charter schools are seen as disruptive innovations like the transistor radio that can transform education by better meeting student needs through flexibility and separation from traditional systems. 3. The school district should support local charter schools because they keep state funding in the district and allow educational innovations to develop and potentially improve all local schools.

1. Why Charter Schools? A presentation to the School Board of Ashland, Wisconsin.

49. KIPP Stand Academy teachers are available by cell phone every evening.

50. At Nuestro Mundo Community School, native Spanish and English speakers learn dual-language proficiency.

51. Mellen Technology Charter School students develop e-portfolios in one of five technology strands: medical, business, graphic arts, pre-engineering and music composition/performance.

52. Northwoods Community Elementary School students use project based learning to explore and do work in their rural community.

53. Working one-on-one with a teacher, Wisconsin Virtual Academy students learn anywhere an Internet connection can be found.

54. The realization driving change today is that one size doesn’t have to fit all. Different kids and different families have different needs. Using the tool of separation, we can create smaller learning communities that are still part of our shared public school system.