On August 30, education news website The 74 will be publishing its first book called The Founder: Inside the revolution to invent (and reinvent) America’s best charter schools, a book written by journalist and author Richard Whitmire. The book will revolve around the history of high-performing public charter schools and includes a foreword written by former Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

“While the leaders of gap-closing charters are starting to push their gap-closing strategies to scale in school districts, some lawmakers and conservative commentators continue to resist the common sense investments that would elevate our education system — from universal early learning to better teacher preparation. I urge them to read this book, to visit these schools, and to meet with these charter pioneers — talk with their students and evaluate their work,” Duncan writes, according to The 74.

Included in the book, says The 74, are a series of smaller stories that fit into the bigger picture of how leaders, advocates and philanthropists have shaped education reform by supporting public charter schools.

Bill Clinton, John King Jr, Joel Klein and more are all featured in the book for their respective roles influencing education through their involvement with charter schools.

In a video preview, Whitmire says he follows up the history of high-performing charter schools with what can possibly be the next generation of schools; he says he's able to profile four in the end of the book. 

To accompany the book’s release, The 74 will be launching a microsite that will feature "documentaries, rare photos, and an extensive video archive featuring many of the key players in the book, including Joel Klein, Don Shalvey, Dacia Toll, Norman Atkins, and Steve Barr.”

On its August 30 release, the book will be available for purchase in e-book format and for free download in PDF format.

Read more about The Founders here.

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Nicole Gorman, Senior Education World Contributor

8/11/2016

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