Equity at Scale: How Public Charter School Networks Can Innovate and Improve Services for Students with Disabilities

When public charter schools first opened in the early 1990s, each was unique and independent. But as successful public charter schools continued to grow and expand their impact beyond a single site, and as organizations developed school designs that could be implemented at multiple locations, networks of public charter schools emerged. The public charter school landscape now offers a mix of independent and networked schools, the latter sharing common elements such as design, management, and governance. This brief offers public charter school networks ways to affect and strengthen the special education offerings for students enrolled in networked public charter schools.