Alabama: The Alabama Education Association runs attack ads against a pro-school choice candidate during Republican special election primaries (AL.com).

California: L.A.'s public school choice initiative became more about collaboration than competition (Huffington Post). San Fernando Valley Charter schools form an advocacy group (Daily News).

Colorado: School choice candidates win a majority on the Jefferson County School Board (Denver Post).

D.C.: Parents will be able to use one application to apply to many different schools of choice (Education Week, Washington Post). Bureaucracy, not school choice, was the problem in D.C. (redefinED). The district approves two Texas-based charter school operators to open new schools (Washington Post).

Florida: A bullied student finds a new home using a tax-credit scholarship to attend a private school (redefinED). With charter and private school options on the rise, the Pinellas County School District markets magnet schools to attract students back to the district (Tampa Bay Times). Robin Gibson, a prominent Democrat with close ties to former Govs. Bob Graham and Lawton Chiles, defends charter schools from critics (The Ledger). The superintendent of the Hillsborough County School District has reservations about allowing a competing charter school on MacDill Air Force Base (Tampa Bay Times).

Georgia: Parents choose private schools for many reasons other than high test scores (One News Now).

Hawaii: A charter school fires its principal after he is charged with the theft of more than $150,000 from the school (Hawaii News Now).

Indiana: Gov. Mike Pence wants to increase the number of charter schools in the state (Post Tribune).

Louisiana: Gov. Bobby Jindal and school choice supporters may be declaring victory against the DOJ's anti voucher suit but the fight isn't over yet (Education Week, Times Picayune, National Review, Wall Street Journal, Bayou Buzz, The Town Talk ). The judge in the DOJ's anti voucher suit ordered both sides to come up with a plan to prevent racial segregation (Associated Press, Bloomberg, New York Times). A former Democrat and state legislature turns from voucher foe to voucher supporter (The Advocate). (more…)

Arkansas: Gubernatorial candidates discuss education and school choice (Arkansas News Bureau, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette).

D.C.: Harmony Public Schools runs 40 charter schools in Texas and hopes to expand into the district (Washington Post). Critics contend gentrification, not education reform, is driving D.C's NAEP score gains but researcher Mathew Ladner says gentrification is only playing  a small role (Foundation for Excellence in Education). The U.S. Government Accountability Office highlights weaknesses in administration and oversight of the Opportunity Scholarship Program (GAO, Washington Post, Education Week, Huffington Post, The Answer Sheet).

Delaware: The Appoquinimink School District hopes to enroll 465 students from outside the district (Middletown Transcript).

Florida: Private schools enrolling special needs students through the McKay scholarship program may lose up to $800 per pupil in funding if the student also enrolls in a class with the Florida Virtual School (redefinED).

Georgia: Hundreds of parents in Macon hope to enroll their child in a new charter school set to open in August, 2014 (NBC/WMGT 41).

Louisiana: The Obama administration is trying to stop the expansion of vouchers based on faulty logic and data not supported by research (National Review, Wall Street Journal). Many charter schools have been eligible to return to the Orleans Parish School District but none have elected to do so yet (The Lens). Another report shows vouchers did not increase racial segregation in Louisiana (this was the basis for the DOJ suit to stop vouchers in the state) (Times Picayune, Cato Institute). Republicans in Louisiana are reaching out to black voters with education and school choice (Times Picayune). The chairman of the Republican National Committee says Louisiana's voucher program provides an escape route for students in bad schools (Times Picayune). (more…)

Alabama: The state court will allow three parents to defend the new school choice program against a lawsuit from the Alabama Education Association that seeks to overturn it (Tuscaloosa News).

Arizona: GEICO donates $8 million to the state's corporate tuition tax credit scholarship program (Arizona Daily Star).

Colorado: Education reformers in Douglas County are facing re-election again union backed candidates who want to roll back school choice (Denver Post)

D.C.: Academy of Hope starts a charter school to prepare adults for the workforce (Elevation).

Florida: A high-profile St. Petersburg charter school is facing growing pains while it looks for a new principal and plans to open another campus across the bay in Tampa (Tampa Bay Times).

Indiana:  A Columbus area charter school is short $250,000 after an unsuccessful capital campaign, a state funding cut and enrollment drop, and the school may be forced to close (Associated Press). Kevin Chavous, chairman of Democrats for Education Reform, says school choice needs bipartisan support (Indianapolis Star).

Iowa: Joy Pullmann, editor of School Choice News, says Iowa students would benefit from vouchers or expanded tax-credit scholarships (Des Moines Register).

Louisiana: WNBA basketball star and four-time Olympic gold medalist Lisa Leslie is a school choice advocate (The Advocate). The state superintendent of public instruction gets a tour of the new Course Choice virtual school program (The Times-Picayune). Enrollment in the voucher program is up 38 percent despite the U.S. Department of Justice's misguided (and incorrect) lawsuit (The Times-Picayune, Associated Press). The DOJ is trying to prevent parents from defending the school voucher legislation in court (Education Week, National Review). Republican senators question the DOJ lawsuit (The Times-Picayune). A new documentary, "Rebirth" examines the post-Katrina New Orleans school system (Education Week). School performance is up and the number of low performing schools is down in New Orleans (The Times-Picayune, The Advocate). (more…)

Alabama: More than 50 students take advantage of the new accountability law which allows students to access scholarships to attend private schools (WSFA).

Arizona: The BASIS Tucson North charter school is one of the best schools in the U.S. and the world (Education Next).

Colorado: Candidates for an open seat on the Denver school board debate last week, with one arguing that school choice harms public schools and the other saying public schools need to have the same freedoms as schools of choice (Ed News Colorado). More than 300 people protested against Douglas County school board policies including teacher evaluations and vouchers (Denver Post).

Florida: Gov. Rick Scott presents Shine Awards for excellent teaching to several private school teachers and principals, including individuals representing schools accepting Step Up For Students tax credit scholarships (Gov. Scott press release). (Step Up co-hosts this blog.)

Georgia: The Georgia Supreme Court rules charter schools do not have to help pay off district schools accumulated pension debt (Atlanta Journal-Constitution).

Idaho: Terry Ryan, head of the Idaho Charter School Network, wants to make Idaho the leader of rural charter school education (Idaho Press).

Indiana: A new law prohibits school districts from turning away transfer students for any reason other than capacity. As a result of not being allowed to "cherry-pick" students, some school districts are halting their open enrollment policy (Associated Press). Indiana's voucher program received 20,000 applications from prospective students (Indiana Public Media). State Sen. Vaneta Becker blames school choice as one of the causes for rural county budget problems (Tri State Media). (more…)

Alabama: The Rev. H.K. Matthews, a civil rights icon now living in Alabama, says school choice is an extension of the civil rights movement (AI.com).

Colorado: The Douglas County School District offers private school vouchers for students but some residents, policymakers and journalists can't see anything but conspiracy theories (Our Lone Tree News). Fifteen new charter schools open statewide for the 2013-14 school year (The Gazette).

Connecticut: State Superintendent of Schools William McKersie wants public school choice and more digital learning for students (Greenwich Post).

Florida: Education leaders urge the governor to overhaul the school grading system again (which also applies to charter schools) (Tampa Bay Times). Florida Virtual School is facing hard times as program revenue drops 20 percent (Education Week). Charter schools are under scrutiny from the Department of Education after a ban on charging additional fees and requiring volunteer hours from parents (Tampa Bay Times).

Louisiana: The U.S. Department of Justice files suit to block the state's new school choice program, arguing it violates court ordered desegregation (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Advocate). The Black Alliance for Educational Options and Gov. Bobby Jindal both say the scholarship program provides a vehicle for low-income students to escape failing schools and that the Justice Department should drop the lawsuit (Education Week, Huffington Post, Weekly Standard). The Washington Post editorial board calls the DOJ lawsuit "appalling" (Washington Post). "Course choice" is underway in Louisiana (Education Week).

(more…)

Alabama: The Southern Poverty Law Center is suing to block the new school choice law under equal protections grounds (AL.com, NPR, Times Daily, US News and World Report). Essentially, they're arguing that if you can't help every child, you shouldn't help any child (HT to Jason Bedrick).

Florida: Step Up for Students, which administers Florida's education tax-credit scholarship program, received a $1 million donation from WellCare Health Plans, Inc. The contribution will fund 198 scholarships this school year (PRWeb).

Kentucky: U.S. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) appeared at an event with the Black Alliance for Education Options and Democrats for Education Reform to promote school choice and charter schools (Huffington Post, Education Week).

Louisiana: Education leaders in Baton Rouge are reviewing applications from charter schools to see who might be eligible to use some of the $16 million available for capital and start-up costs (The Advocate). The U.S. Justice Department is trying to stop vouchers from being offered in any school district still under court ordered desegregation (Associated Press, Times-Picayune, The Advocate).

Massachusetts: School choice students in the Berlin-Boylston area won't be getting bus rides to school anymore (The Telegram).

Minnesota: Charter schools are feeling more pressure to participate in accountability rating systems (Hechinger Report). (more…)

Alabama: 29 private schools are now eligible to accept scholarships and transfer students under the state's new Alabama Accountability Act (AL.com). The Revenue Department proposed rules for the new tuition tax-credit law and it will prohibit tax-credits for students currently enrolled in private schools (Associated Press).

Arizona: School children in Phoenix have lots of educational options (East Valley Tribune).

Florida: Some private schools in Florida are signing on to the Common Core standards (Education Week). Florida Virtual School eliminated 177 full-time teaching and support staff positions due to budget cuts (redefinED). Parents are picking out clothes, backpacks and school supplies but the hardest choice is where to send their kids to school (The Tampa Tribune). Florida Urban League leaders and education advocates to talk about growing school choice options during series of town hall meetings (redefinED).

Illinois: Four new public schools outside Chicago will be required to offer public school choice to students under No Child Left Behind (Daily Herald). Senator Bill Brady (R-Bloomington) is running for governor and he plans on pushing for a school voucher, worth up to $3,800 (Alton Daily News). Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush spoke at a conference in Chicago calling for education reforms including expanding school choice programs nationwide (KWTX.com).

Louisiana: It's back to school time in Louisiana and parents are busy making their school choices (The Advocate). Rapid Parish school board just approved its public school transfer policy that allows students in lower-performing schools to transfer to better ones (Associated Press). A new CREDO study shows students in Louisiana charter schools average an extra 50 days of learning and reading and 65 days in math compared to their public school counterparts (CREDO Stanford).

Massachusetts: Pentucket Regional School committee is considering cutting back enrollment in its public school choice policy as it grows more popular than ever (Newbury Port News).

Missouri: A public school choice law that allows students to transfer out of poor performing school districts may leave one district bankrupt as more than 2,000 students apply to transfer (Education Week). Meanwhile, parents of children denied transfers to other public schools are looking to the ACLU and other civil-rights lawyers for advice (St. Louis Post-Dispatch). At least one parent is mad that the government will spend nearly $20,000 on their child's public education, but won't spend a penny for the child to attend a local, less expensive, private school (St. Louis Post-Dispatch). (more…)

Arkansas: The U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals dismisses a lawsuit to overturn the state's public school choice law, which will allow public school students to openly transfer to other public schools outside their district (Arkansas Times, Arkansas Online).

Arizona: The state sees an upswing in school districts wanting to convert some of their traditional schools into charters (Arizona Daily Star). Charter schools in Arizona will get greater parity in funding for vocational programs (Arizona Daily Star).

Florida: Charter schools again earn A and F grades at higher rates than district schools under the state's grading system (redefinED). A breakdown provided by the Hillsborough County School District, the eighth largest in the country, shows that in some district schools, 100 or more students have left for charters (Tampa Bay Times).

Louisiana: The U.S. 5th Circuit Court  of Appeals partially dismisses the Louisiana Department of Education's appeal on the injunction against the state's new education voucher program in Tangipahoa Parish (The Advocate).

Michigan: Detroit may be shrinking, but charter schools in Michigan are growing (Detroit News).

Nevada: Wait-lists for magnet, charter and private schools grow in the Silver State as demand exceeds the available options to Nevada's public school students (Reason Magazine).

New Jersey: Gov. Chris Christie's administration approves six new charter schools for next fall, bringing the total statewide to 87 (New Jersey Spotlight). Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Lonegan says his likely Democratic rival, Newark Mayor C0ry Booker, needs to "man up" and admit whether he is for or against school vouchers (Newsworks New Jersey) (more…)

Illinois: The Chicago Teachers Union and privately-run charter schools railed against potential district funding cuts (Chicago Tribune). Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration  will partially restore funding to the United Neighborhood Organization so the charter school operator can finish a new soccer academy high school by this fall (Chicago Tribune).

Arizona: The Senate approves the expansion of a school choice program that adds kindergartners and increases funding for students who leave charter  schools for private schools (Associated Press). More from the Arizona Daily Star. The legislature passed a bill expanding the type of corporations eligible to participate as donors in the state's tax credit scholarship program and streamlined the approval process (Cato Institute).

Louisiana: Lawmakers find new funding stream for voucher program (Education Week). More from the Associated Press.

Indiana: A new state law will give high-performing school districts or schools more flexibility in designing their own curriculum, professional programs and schedules (Indianapolis Star). Another new law limits how much state aid charter schools can receive to target adult drop0outs (Associated Press).

Wisconsin: Wauwatosa School District officials protest the opening of an independent charter school in the city because it could directly compete with them for students and state funds (Journal Sentinel). Gov. Scott Walker says he is comfortable with the slow expansion of the school voucher program (Associated Press). Critics of the statewide school voucher expansion continue calling attention to campaign donations given to Sen. Alberta Darling, co-chair  of the committee that recommended the start of the expansion (Wisconsin Public Radio). State Superintendent Tony Evers speaks out against the state budget proposal to expand the voucher school system (Journal Sentinel). A traditional elementary school starts a special program for gifted students with great success (Education News).

Maine: Senate Democrats pass a bill that gives communities more input and control over approval of charter schools, but there still are more hurdles (Morning Sentinel).

Florida: Nearly every teacher and parent at Rowlett Magnet Elementary voted to go forward with plans for a charter conversion school (redefinED). (more…)

Illinois: Gov. Pat Quinn is expected to sign into law a bill that sets aside 33 percent of the enrollment at charter schools for children with parents assigned to federal military bases (Lake County Journal).

New York: The successful True North Rochester Prep charter school group plans to expand to serve 2,600 students (Democrat and Chronicle).

New Jersey: Newark's charter schools network receives $10 million from national donors including the Walton Foundation and the Doris and Donald Fisher Fund (Newark Patch). A proposed state takeover of the Camden school district could result in an all-charter district or a radically restructured one (Education Week). Debate continues on Gov. Chris Christie's school voucher program (NJ Spotlight). The state education department blocks the opening of two virtual charter schools with ties to K12, Inc. (Star-Ledger).

Michigan: Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences' CEO, Maurice Morton, says the charter school has had its share of success and failure, much like any public school (BET).

Maine: Bangor City Council considers a moratorium on charter schools, citing the negative effects of competition on the local school district (Bangor Daily News). Lawmakers pass a bill requiring charter schools to be run by nonprofits (Bangor Daily News). The Senate gave preliminary approval to a bill that would put a temporary moratorium on virtual charter schools (Portland Press Herald). The charter school commission considers a year moratorium on charter applications after noting the time-consuming work monitoring the five charters it already approved (Morning Sentinel).

Pennsylvania: The Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit, a school choice program, aims to raise at least $1 million by July 1, with donations starting to add up (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). The House Education Committee passed legislation that prevents charter schools from double dipping in pension funds from the district and the state, and increases the tax credit program funding from $25 million to $125 million (Patriot-News). More from the York Dispatch. State charter school leaders joined Philadelphia's call for more state education funding (NewsWorks). 2016 GOP presidential candidate Rand Paul set to give commencement speech at Philadelphia charter school (Washington Examiner).

Mississippi: House Speaker Philip Gunn predicts one of the most heavily-debated education reform measures next year in the Legislature will be tax credit scholarships (Northeast Mississippi News). (more…)