Joe Nathan Rosa Parks-yes, that Rosa Parks-recently applied to open a charter school in Detroit. That’s one of many things omitted in Richard Rothstein’s critique of the charter public school movement [“Charter Conundrum,” TAP, July-August 1998]. As a researcher, a former teacher in inner-city public schools, and a former PTA president whose three children attend […]
Richard Rothstein
Richard Rothstein is a research associate of the Economic Policy Institute, a senior fellow of the Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Law and Social Policy at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, a contributing editor of The American Prospect, and an occasional contributor. His previous work on racial segregation and public education is posted here, and his most recent Prospect print story, ‘The Making of Ferguson,’ can be read here. Readers may correspond with him about his writing at riroth@epi.org.
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Posted inEducation in America
Conceding Success
Several recent studies show that two major undertakings of progressive government — environmental regulation and public education — have been far more successful than widely believed.
Posted inEducation in America
Behind the Numbers: When States Spend More
Surprisingly, even without federal mandates, the states have both increased and equalized school outlays. There is a political lesson here — about coalition building and grassroots activism.
Posted inEducation in America
Charter Conundrum
In exchange for autonomy from school districts, charter schools promise to achieve measurable progress in children’s performance. But the movement is based on a dubious premise.
Posted inFeatures
Charter Schools in Action: Renewing Public Education
Fifteen hundred charter schools have been established nationwide since 1991, enrolling 300,000 schoolchildren. The original idea was for parents and teachers, with educational visions, to establish independent publicly funded schools, free from regulations that impede innovation. Superior results would stimulate imitation by regular schools. Charters have been endorsed by both liberal reformers and conservative critics […]
Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
Friends of Bill? Why Liberals Should Let Up on Clinton
In Clinton’s first two years, myopic liberals complained about his compromises and disparaged his accomplishments. Now there will be fewer accomplishments and bigger compromises. Insisting on purity could only make things worse.
Posted inAmerica and the World
The Global Hiring Hall: Why We Need Worldwide Labor Standards
Years ago we decided to banish child labor within our borders. Will such standards now be extended to the global economy — or abandoned entirely?
Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
The Left’s Obsessive Opposition
My liberal friends are being too hard on Bill Clinton. His mandate and congressional majority are wafer thin, and he’s doing well with what he has. Would you rather have George Bush?
Posted inEducation in America
The Myth of Public School Failure
Public schools are actually performing remarkably well. What they need is not radical reform but more support.
Posted inAmerica and the World
Continental Drift: NAFTA and Its Aftershocks
The trade problem is much bigger than the treaty.