Closure and the roles of student performance and enrollment characteristics: A survival analysis of charter schools in Ohio’s largest urban counties

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DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.27.4568

Keywords:

Ohio, Charter Schools, School Choice, Access to Education, Race, Poverty, Segregation, Closed Schools, Student Achievement

Abstract

In this study, we seek to contribute to the literature on traditional charter school (TCS) closure by examining the potential relationships among racial and socioeconomic enrollment characteristics, TCS age and early adopter status, student achievement and the likelihood of closure within Ohio’s “Big 8” Urban Counties (OBEUC). Using life tables and binary logistic regression, we examined 3,204 TCS school years (424 TCS) in OBEUC from the arrival of TCS in 1998 through 2015 to assess these relationships. While the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) reports that poor academic performance is the second most cited reason for TCS closure, we find no evidence that student performance predicts TCS closure in OBEUC. However, we find that compared to TCS with integrated enrollments, TCS with predominantly White or Black enrollments face higher risks of closure in OBEUC, even when controlling for other factors. This lack of a connection between student performance and TCS closure calls into question the argument that TCS closure is evidence that the accountability function of school choice policy is working. 

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Author Biographies

Elizabeth Anne Gilblom, North Dakota State University

Elizabeth A. Gilblom is an assistant professor in Education Doctoral Programs at North Dakota State University. Her research interests include privatization in education, geographic information systems, and community-based education. Dr. Gilblom received her Ph.D. in urban education with a specialization in adult, continuing, and higher education from Cleveland State University.

Hilla I. Sang, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Hilla Sang is a doctoral candidate in Health Policy and Management at Kent State University’s College of Public Health. She currently works as the Data Visualization and GIS Specialist at UNLV's Lied Library. Her research interests include spatial analytics, geographic information systems, and health equity.

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Published

2019-09-09

How to Cite

Gilblom, E. A., & Sang, H. I. (2019). Closure and the roles of student performance and enrollment characteristics: A survival analysis of charter schools in Ohio’s largest urban counties. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 27, 107. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.27.4568

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Articles