The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools marks this annual celebration by honoring public education advocates and a growing movement in support of public education.
The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools will celebrate the annual National Charter Schools Week during the week of May 12-18, 2024 to honor the 8,000 public charter schools, 251,000 dedicated teachers, and thousands of local, state, and national advocates who raise their voices for the nearly 4 million—and growing—charter school students each day.
Charter schools are the only part of public education that is steadily growing. Over the last four school years (2019-20 to 2022-23), charter schools gained more than 300,000 new students, an increase of 9%. Meanwhile, district public schools lost 1.5 million students at the beginning of the pandemic and enrollment has not rebounded over the past three years, creating a net loss of 3.5%. Where there is space, families want seats in charter schools.
During National Charter Schools Week, the National Alliance will honor seven exceptional charter school advocates with the annual Changemaker Award, recognizing these leaders for using their ideas, talents, and platforms to advance education opportunity for all. The 2024 Changemakers will be announced on May 13, 2024.
National Charter Schools Week 2024 programming is as follows:
- Sunday May 12: Prepare to celebrate National Charter Schools Week all week long–and share a special recognition for the moms of the movement on Mother’s Day.
- Monday, May 13: Raise your voice with our seven 2024 Charter School Changemakers, including two parent advocates from Alabama and New Mexico, a student advocate from New Mexico, a community advocate from Washington State, and three charter school leader advocates from Colorado, Wisconsin, and West Virginia. These individuals are recognized for raising their voices for charter schools and the students and communities they serve.
- Tuesday, May 14: Learn more about the critical Charter Schools Program (CSP) with the release of the 2024 CSP Impact Report, highlighting how charter schools are succeeding for students with these funds and why this federal funding program is vital to growing and replicating high-quality charter schools across the country.
- Wednesday, May 15: Join the National Alliance’s 2024 Charter School Changemakers as they take to Capitol Hill to speak on why they raise their voices for charter schools. Members of the media are invited to this panel discussion. Please contact [email protected] for more information.
- Thursday, May 16: Tune in to the latest in public education as the National Alliance launches Season 2 of the Get Schooled in Public Education Podcast. Check out Season 1 now!
- Friday, May 17: This is your chance for you and your community to share far and wide why you raise your voice for charter schools with #CharterLove and #WeAreCharter on social media.
- Saturday, May 18: Keep the celebration going by joining the National Alliance at the National Charter Schools Conference in Boston, June 30 – July 3 and by finding ways to get involved and support your local public charter school.