The latest Forbes magazine has an article (here) that discusses the Harlem Children's Zone, founded and operated by Geoffrey Canada. HCZ has been in operation since 1994 and has expanded its reach in the community with programs serving children from birth to college.

Mr. Canada founded two charter schools, Harlem Children's Zone Promise Academy I and II, which opened in 2004 and 2005, respectively. Both schools outperform their respective community school districts on the state's English and mathematics exams. In a study last spring Harvard researches found that Promise Academies closed the racial achievement gap by scoring in the 79th percentile among New York City students and outscoring the City's white students.

Forbes reports that the charter schools operate on $19,200 per student when including the private donations raised by Mr. Canada, making it difficult to replicate in other cities. However, public school districts in New York State typically spend more per student, much of which goes toward building costs and public guarantee-benefit pensions.

Accountability Hard To Replicate in District
A greater impediment against replication of HCZ, or the charter model in general, is the accountability that characterizes charter schools. In short, they don't have to finance rubber rooms for teachers. Promise Academy I had replaced its teachers at a much higher "turnover" rate than any district school could every attempt under the typical union contract. Half its faculty was replaced after the first year; another third was changed over in the second year. Student scores have risen because the right teachers were rewarded for better results.

Very few charter schools can raise the money and afford the breadth of services offered by HCZ Promise Academies. But charter schools can and do offer more instructional time and can hold teachers accountable and reward them for student success in ways beyond a school district. Moreover, Geoff Canada has leadership qualities beyond being an exceptional fundraiser, and harnessing those qualities is essential to success in charter and district public schools.

Peter Murphy
for The Chalkboard
Twitter.com/petermurphy26
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