The following resources might be helpful to school districts and the community partners who work with them.

An Overview of Scholarship Tax Credit Programs  There are several forms of school choice, and one form receiving increasing attention in statehouses is scholarship tax credit programs. Learn the ins and outs of scholarship tax credits in the new resource, which draws on current state policies to find common themes in the organizations that manage these programs, the students and donors who participate and the tax benefits available to those who fund them.

The State of the Charter Sector: What You Need to Know About the Charter Sector Today This document provides the latest available information on the charter school sector, including updated data on growth, performance, and geographic trends. It also includes analyses of the challenges that charter schools face and how the sector is trying to address them. Nationally, 6% of students attend charter schools. After years of rapid growth, the number of charter schools and students is starting to level off, though school closures understate the pace of new school openings. More than 80% of current charter students are in 15 states, including Florida. The majority of schools opened since 2005 are in 16 states; 40% of all new school growth during that time occurred in California, Texas, and Florida. The latest available research shows that, nationally, charters outperform traditional public schools in reading and under-perform in math. Charter performance is improving over time. A higher percentage of low-performing charter schools than traditional public schools have closed since 2006. Charters serve relatively fewer students with disabilities than traditional public schools. (Bellwether Education Partners)

New Resource Exploring the 5 Phases of Collective Impact Collective Impact initiatives generally follow five phases that each present unique challenges. In this blog post, Tamarack Institute’s Liz Weaver shares about a new compendium that collects tools and resources that are organized according to each of the five phases to make for an easy reference tool for initiatives starting out or needing a refresher.