Expanding L.A. Charter-School Group Sets Up National Office
July 2, 2014 | Read Time: 1 minute
Green Dot Public Schools, which operates 21 charter schools serving 11,000 students in the Los Angeles area, has established a national organization to oversee its expansion into Tennessee and Washington State, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The nonprofit will take over as many as 10 middle and high schools in Memphis starting this fall, with financial support from local foundations. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is partially funding the organization’s move into Washington, set to begin with a campus in Tacoma next year.
The Memphis charters will essentially step in for former neighborhood schools, accept all students from their local attendance areas. The neighborhood model, which Green Dot pioneered in Los Angeles, differs from that of most charter groups, which enroll any interested students and hold lotteries when demand exceeds available places.
