The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools congratulates Joe Biden and Kamala Harris on their historic victory. As the newly elected president and vice president, they have many priorities. We urge them to make sure listening to parents is one of those priorities.
Americans turned out to vote in this election in record numbers. And many of them cared a great deal about education. In fact, according to polling this fall by Morning Consult, American voters ranked education as their fourth most important issue.
“We look forward to working with President-elect Biden. He builds on a strong legacy of charter support from the Obama administration and was part of a team that dramatically increased support for the federal Charter Schools Program,” said Nina Rees, president and CEO of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. “We are counting on the incoming Biden-Harris administration to continue listening to parents and providing excellent public-school options, including public charter schools.
We are grateful for Joe Biden’s declaration that he will be a president of all Americans and look forward to seeing him specifically support the needs of a diverse group of families who seek better public-school options for their children. We call on the administration to continue investing in charter schools because their proven impact on student achievement is well documented.”
A record number of parents voted with their feet in 2020 and enrolled their students in charter schools. These innovative public schools especially appealed to parents who were concerned about whether their children’s needs would be met during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Across the nation, we saw significant enrollment spikes in charter schools because they offer a combination of flexibility, tailored instruction, social-emotional support, and rigorous coursework.
We look forward to working with the Biden-Harris administration, and with officials at the federal, state and local level to ensure the voices of parents are heard. Many of those who elected the new president – especially Black voters and suburban parents – overwhelmingly support charter schools.
We will continue to advocate for excellent charter schools because families and students clearly want more and better public education options. Charter schools are an important part of the public education ecosystem, serving nearly 3.3 million students. Further, nearly five million more students would attend a charter school if one were available to them. Charter schools deserve to be supported, treated fairly, and funded equitably.
