The school's Executive Director Mark Francis said that the accreditation helps crumble the false perception that charter schools aren't as strong as traditional public schools. About 25 students are expected to enroll in kindergarten through fifth grade. Maureen Parente, chairwoman of the committee behind the charter school for the deaf, said the charter school will be the first school for the deaf in Nevada. Classes will follow year-round schedule and be taught in American Sign Language and written English. Charters ought to be on the agenda for the left, in part because of their potential to serve as tools of racial and economic justice.
Charters also serve a population that is slightly poorer than average.
But the relationship between charter schools and children of color varies widely from state to state. In California and Colorado, for instance, charter school student bodies are whiter and wealthier than those of regular public schools. But liberals need not abdicate their place on the educational cutting edge, and ought not be seen as defenders of bureaucracy and failure. Charter schools present an opportunity to do the right thing, politically and morally. There is a need here, as evidenced by the struggles of inner-city communities to start their own schools, and progressives ought to answer the call, giving their own flavor to the charter movement.