From my most recent report for the Illinois Policy Institute, co-written with Michael Wille:

Chicago high schools have long held a tragic reputation.

For years, district-wide dropout rates have hovered near 50 percent. High school test scores remain low. Only a relative few students have been able to attend selective schools, where seats are reserved for students with exceptional records in elementary school.

Now, a new group of schools is telling a different story: Students citywide can succeed academically when given the chance.

More than a decade ago, CPS began an experiment that allowed independent groups and neighborhood organizations to start their own open enrollment schools: charter schools. Today, just 29 out of Chicago’s 131 high schools that reported ACT results are charter schools – yet these independent schools are topping the education charts. In fact, when it comes to ACT scores, nine out of ten of the top-scoring, open enrollment high schools in Chicago are charter schools. Better yet, many of these schools are posting ACT scores previously unheard of for high poverty high schools in Chicago.