Welcome to the EduVerse with ProfessorJBA. This series is designed for parents and caregivers in an effort to inform them about the various roles and aspects of the educational landscape to ensure that caregivers can make informed decisions regarding their child(ren)’s education.

Over the last 3-5 years, more Black families and educators are leaving traditional public school systems.

Like in most public school education systems, Black students perform below or behind their white peers.

According to a study in Ohio, parents who have children in charter or independent schools reflect that students, particularly Black students, enrolled in charter schools showed improvements academically, socially, and emotionally compared to their peers in local public schools.

The big question I want to tackle for parents in Indy schools is why some charters perform better?

I believe that some charters are performing better than traditional public schools for the following three reasons:

1. Investment in flexible learning models.
2. Focus on student success.
3. Centering family engagement.

What stands out to me most is that after the pandemic hit, many school buildings reopened with face to face instruction going back to many of the same systems of educating and teaching children that did not work beforehand.

Regardless of the type of school setting, all children should be learning, thriving, and developing in educational settings that fit their needs, not stifles their growth.

Both traditional public schools and charter schools are educating Black children. The question for parents should be, are the schools educating them holistically, or are they teaching them how to excel on standardized tests? Tests may, in fact, open doors for higher education access but that alone won’t ensure a successful post-secondary life.

This is why school choice is crucial. It opens the doors to many options. Until traditional public schools consistently provide a good education, alternative choices will continue to be developed.

Charter schools are leveling up regarding elevating, empowering, and embracing parent voices in helping build and provide quality, advanced, and holistic educational programs for Black students.

Just because some charter schools are doing well with educating Black students doesn’t mean that some traditional public schools aren’t doing well. It also doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t keep holding up high standards and expectations for the education Black kids regardless of school type.