KIPP responds to criticism on attrition rates
This was written by leaders of the Knowledge Is Power Program, better known as the KIPP charter schools, in response to a guest post I published last week. That piece, by Richard D. Kahlenberg, a senior fellow at The Century Foundation and author of "All Together Now: Creating Middle-Class Schools through Public School Choice," was itself in response to a debate that I had with my inimitable colleague Jay Mathews about school reform that touched on KIPP. You can find that debate here. By Jonathan Cowan and Steve Mancini On Jan. 3, The Answer Sheet featured a guest post by Richard Kahlenberg that highlighted attrition in KIPP schools. We respect Mr. Kahlenberg’s right to question KIPP’s results, and we welcome healthy debate about the merits of KIPP’s philosophy and model. However, it is also important to clarify the fact base around the issues he raises.