New resource to help you "choose your school"

This month the Cleveland Transformation Alliance (CTA) launched a new school choice tool for families across our city. The CTA is a new nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring every child in Cleveland attends an excellent school and that every neighborhood has a mutlitude of quality school options from which families can choose. A new website, www.clevelandta.org is now available to help Cleveland families make informed decisions about the schools their children attend – including a comprehensive, interactive and searchable “report card” on every public (district and charter) school in the city.

Cleveland Transformation Alliance is a key component of Cleveland’s Plan for Transforming Schools, and advocates for progress outlined within that plan. The Transformation Alliance has four distinctive roles:  (1) Assess the quality of all district and charter schools in Cleveland; (2) Communicate to parents about quality school choices; (3) Ensure fidelity to the citywide education plan; and (4) Monitor charter sector quality and growth.  The Alliance’s Board of Directors stands "unified for quality schools" and includes representatives from Cleveland Metropolitan School District, Cleveland Teachers Union, charter school authorizers, the business community, foundations, parents and educators.

“This effort reflects my deep commitment to Cleveland’s citizens to transform our school system so that all children can experience a quality education,” said Mayor Frank G. Jackson, board chair of the Alliance. “For the first time, comprehensive information on every district and charter school can be found in one place, so families can learn about their many options when it comes to our public schools.”

CTA's new website and its “Choose Your School!” campaign is a citywide outreach effort to encourage families to become active, empowered and engaged “school choosers” for the 2014-2015 school year. “With a growing number of innovative school models and charter school options available to families, our goal through this program is to make the community aware of all public school options across the city,” said Megan O’Bryan, executive director.

The new website, www.clevelandta.org, will serve as the communications platform for the work of the Alliance. Its first comprehensive, interactive and searchable “report card” on every public school citywide includes information on how to choose a school, state academic ratings, special programs and features, enrollment processes and more. The Alliance is charged with growing a “portfolio” of high-performing district and charter schools in Cleveland, and intends the new website and "Choose Your School" campaign will create demand for more quality school options across the city.