Press Releases

The Georgia Charter Schools Commission approved two important measures at its monthly meeting on Thursday, each of which will have a positive impact on the state’s charter schools. The Commission voted to lower the standard fee it charges Commission-approved charter schools from three percent to two percent of the per pupil funding revenue the schools receive, and to grant individual charters to Odyssey School in Newnan and Georgia Cyber Academy/K12, which had been operating under the same charter.

The Georgia Charter Schools Association is hosting a job fair to help charter schools fill their faculty/staff rosters for the 2011-12 school year. The GCSA Job Fair is scheduled for March 5, at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (250 14th Street NW, Suite 112, Atlanta, 30318). During the Job Fair, school officials will conduct brief interviews with prospective teachers during the job fair, and possibly…

The Georgia Charter Schools Association, the Center for an Educated Georgia and several other organizations are teaming up for a massive rally to show the importance of school choice to the members of the Georgia General Assembly.

The School Choice Celebration & Rally is scheduled for 10 a.m., Jan. 25, 2011, on the steps of the State Capitol Building (Washington Street side). The theme is “More School Choice. A Unified Voice.”

The goal of the rally is to celebrate school choice options in Georgia, and show the state’s politicians — at the start of the 2011 Legislative Session — that every child is different and every parent should have the right to choose the school that best fits their needs.

Eighteen (18) charter schools were recognized by the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement and the state Department of Education for outstanding academic achievement during the 2009-2010 school year. The schools are among nearly 350 public schools in Georgia acknowledged under Georgia’s Single Statewide Accountability System (SSAS), which judges schools based on their performance on state curriculum exams and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) status.

The Georgia Charter Schools Commission (GCSC) approved four charter school petitions and increased funding for Commission-approved virtual charter schools. The four new charter schools are:

• Chattahoochee Hills Charter School
• Cherokee Charter Academy
• Georgia Connections Academy
• Heritage Preparatory Academy

The staff of the Georgia Charter Schools Commission (GCSC) is recommending four charter school petitions be approved by the Commission at its monthly meeting, Thursday (Dec. 16). The four prospective schools are Chattahoochee Hills Charter School, Cherokee Charter Academy, Georgia Connections Academy and Heritage Preparatory Academy.

In reaction to the fire that severely damaged the KIPP West Atlanta Young Scholars (WAYS) Academy building on Friday, Georgia Charter Schools Association CEO Tony Roberts, Ph.D. expresses sympathy and calls for action and assistance for the high-performing middle school.

The Georgia Chamber of Commerce has filed an amicus brief to the Georgia Supreme Court, on behalf of the Georgia Charter Schools Commission and charter schools throughout the state. The Chamber’s amicus brief — in reference to a lawsuit filed against the Commission, the Georgia Department of Education and two Commission-approved charter schools — argues that both the Commission and HB881 (the law that created the Commission) are fully Constitutional, and furthermore, that quality charter schools and school choice are “essential to developing and maintaining an educated workforce, which is key to attracting and sustaining corporations and industries in our state.”

Interested in starting a quality charter school? The Walton Family Foundation Start Up Grant initiative can help. The program targets the Atlanta Public Schools attendance zone, but a limited number of grants are available for exurban and rural areas with limited quality public school choice options.

The Georgia Charter Schools Association (GCSA) and the Georgia Parent Advocacy Network (GPAN), in conjunction with the Center for an Educated Georgia (CEG) will present a free screening of the gripping documentary, “The Lottery,” 6 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 30, at the United Way Building’s Loudermilk Center (40 Courtland Street, NE, Atlanta 30303).