Arizona: David Garcia, a Democrat and candidate for the open State Superintendent of Public Instruction seat, opposes private school choice so long as public schools are not "fully funded." Garcia says he is a supporter of public charter schools (Eastern Arizona Courier).

California: Rocketship charter schools expand and modify their blended learning model to empower teachers with more flexibility and control of their classroom (Education Next).

Florida: Step Up For Students will issue more than 60,000 scholarships to low-income students this school year, allowing many more parents to send their kids to private schools (Tampa Bay Times, Miami Herald). Meanwhile, school choice champion and education commissioner Tony Bennett resigns amidst a school grading controversy in Indiana (Tampa Bay Times, Miami Herald). Florida school choice supporters are disappointed to see him go ( redefinEd).

Kansas: Georgia State Rep. Alicia Morgan (D-Cobb County), a rising star in school choice and ed reform circles, visits Wichita, Kansas to discuss benefits of school choice (Kansas.com). A Kansas City charter school has been sued because it owes over $10.6 million to creditors, with much of the debt coming from buying, renovating and equipping the school building (Kansas City Star).

Louisiana: The state's new "Course Choice" online program now has more than 1,000 students on the wait list (Education Week). More than 3,000 students enrolled in it (Politico). The Louisiana Department of Education has received more than 8,000 applications to participate in the state school voucher program this fall, up from about 3,000 last year (WAFB 9).

Maine: Gov. Paul LePage says Maine needs more charter schools (Main Public Broadcasting Network) but the state senate president disagrees, saying traditional public schools are underfunded (Boston.com). The governor continues to defend charter schools from critics (Portland Press Herald). (more…)