Mack Clifton

"Yes, I do."

Shelia Dixon

"Like the great union leader, Albert Shanker, I support the original vision for charter schools as places for teachers to innovate to improve student achievement. Our public charter schools also provide expanded options for students, parents and teachers.

• Charter School Facilities. Neither the school district nor the city has made it a goal to help charter schools locate in buildings that facilitate excellent learning environments. The city is uniquely situated with expertise at BDC and an inventory of buildings to match the needs of charter schools with vacant or underutilized buildings. As I did when I was Mayor, I will provide a competitive matching grant program for charter school facilities and instruct my staff to treat charter schools as customers that can bring jobs and investments to communities.
  
  
• Lead in Innovation. Baltimore’s successful public charter schools have developed innovative and effective governance, instructional, and community engagement and organizing practices. As Mayor, I will facilitate the sharing of these practices so that other public schools can adopt them as well.

Elizabeth Embry

"Charter schools are an important part of the equation here in Baltimore, but it is important that we create a framework of policies that strikes the appropriate balance and sets the right incentives for success: we need innovation with accountability. Just as the City government could have a much more collaborative and productive relationship with City Schools, City Schools could have a much more collaborative and productive relationship with public charter school operators. Elizabeth is committed to partnering with City Schools, charter schools, and unions to find workable solutions to the current lawsuit and other challenges that treat traditional and charter schools fairly and let our educators get out of the courtroom and back to focusing on the classroom."

Armand Girard

"Yes, charter schools should be expanded and there is no reason parents should not have a choice in schools with vouchers.  Competition is good."

Nick Mosby

"No matter how expansive our charter school offerings and voucher programs are, our poorest residents will not have universal access to a quality education if we do not improve our public school system to as competitive a level as competing charter schools are able to average. I am interested in any sensible expansion of these programs, but do not believe it is a silver bullet for poorer residents receiving a high-quality education." 

Carl Stokes

"I would prefer that we take best practices from charter schools and implement them in traditional public schools. I believe the money should follow the child."

David Warnock

"Yes, I support charter schools, which are a critical part of my plan to make every school in Baltimore a community school. A quality education creates opportunity, and Baltimore’s public school system serves more than 80,000 children every year who deserve a customized approach and resources like afterschool programs, healthcare, mental health resources, adult education, workforce training and community services available, right at school. Charter schools allow teachers, parents and the community collaborate in the best interest of every child, allowing whole communities begin to thrive. This is why charter schools are an important part of our system -- they are a way to make our public schools into community schools that improve educational outcomes and truly transform communities.

On the other hand, I do not support school vouchers in Baltimore. School vouchers have been used across the country to facilitate school choice and in Baltimore, we have great schools, with more options for parents and families than we’ve ever had. We need to invest in our schools, not take public dollars outside of our school system. Vouchers would not serve the best interests of all the children of Baltimore.

You can read my detailed education position paper here and watch a video with real people talking about where I stand on education here."