Have charter schools grown too fast? Page 1 of 2 | UTSanDiego.com

Have charter schools grown too fast? Page 1 of 2 | UTSanDiego.com:

Have charter schools grown too fast?

The California Charter Schools Association's 20th annual conference took place this week at the San Diego Convention Center. / photo by John Gastaldo * U-T

Mar 14, 2013, 8:48 p.m.

After two decades of offering educational choice to families, leaders of the charter-school movement in California are touting accomplishments but also calling for higher standards in light of some underperforming and mismanaged schools. “If you were to look anywhere in the landscape to find the most exciting things happening right now, you’d look at charters,” Jed Wallace, president and CEO of the California Charter Schools Association, said during the group’s annual conference this week in downtown San Diego. The event drew educators from Chula Vista and Escondido to Los Angeles and San Francisco. San Diego was also the host city for the inaugural statewide charter-school conference in 1993 — the year legislation was signed to allow the first 31 charter campuses to open in California. There are now 1,065 charter schools serving more than 484,000 students in the Golden State. ...