IALA » Database

IALA is a Great Resource for You!

Wayne Jennings — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 18:30:35 +0000

If you think our website has changed, your perceptions are correct. We’ve changed our platform to WordPress for an update and better control. Please have patience as we work out some bugs.

We emphasize that the same huge body of resource material is still available on this website. You will notice that the left panel (at the website www.learningalternatives.net) contains topics to search for and the top beige band here leads to a variety of sections such as interesting articles, items about alternatives, how to order materials, laws, and more.

You can subscribe (left side of website). That’s free and confidential. We do not share names with anyone, ever. Just enter your email address in the yellow band and hit Go. About once a month we send out this email with news on educational alternatives. This helps keep you up-to-date on this topic.

Be sure to use the search engine. It works just like Google only is restricted to our resource goldmine. You are free to use any of the materials on the site!! We work as volunteers with the goal to inform others about educational choices. We receive funding from state alternative education associations to pay overhead costs.

Status of Choices in the U.S.

Wayne Jennings — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 21:30:22 +0000

More options are becoming available to parents and students. The current run down of choices:

Charter laws: 40 states have adopted the charter concept. These vary from strong laws with a high degree of program autonomy to weak laws where the charter school has almost no power to decide anything.

Open enrollment: 42 states give some form of a choice for which school or school district to attend. Some of the statutes provide for voluntary participation by districts and some give the decision totally to the parent.

Vouchers: 6 states have voucher laws usually for a city within the state to have a student

Significant Choice Information and Reports

Wayne Jennings — Sat, 03 Feb 2007 16:47:49 +0000

The National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education at Teachers College, Columbia University is a repository of useful information and research reports on the subjects of privatization, charter schools, vouchers, choice, homeschooling, etc. They provide crisp definitions and background briefing on these topics plus 133 (and counting) research reports. For example, the two recent reports discuss how parents make choices and school choices among public, private, or homeschooling.

They also include Policy Briefings, Book Reviews, FAQs, Hot Topics and other helpful information. This is a valuable resource you will want to bookmark.

Great Resource

Wayne Jennings — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 04:53:26 +0000

The Education Commission of the States is a great resource of reliable information and research and now provides a database of current information on a variety of subjects relevant to this website: alternative education, choices, charter schools, vouchers and 50 some other topics. These take the form of policy briefs, summaries of each state

Valuable Database of State Alternatives

Wayne Jennings — Wed, 03 Mar 2004 18:03:13 +0000

The Education Commission of the States has compiled a very useful database of all 50 states and the islands showing policies and statutes for educational choices including open enrollment, charter schools, vouchers, tax credits and tax deductions and dual/concurrent enrollment.

Charter Schools Online Database

Wayne Jennings — Mon, 24 Nov 2003 04:12:17 +0000

One form of alternatives is the charter school movement in the U.S. About 3,000 charter schools are operating during the 2003-2004 school year. The Education Commission of the States has assembled a valuable database from which reports can be generated across the states about charter school profiles, laws, enrollments, size, policies, funding, facilities, etc.

IALA Annual Conference

Wayne Jennings — Fri, 31 Oct 2003 23:55:50 +0000

The International Association for Learning Alternatives will hold its annual conference in conjunction with the Michigan Alternative Education Association conference April 28-May1, 2004 at Crystal Mountain resort, Thompsonville, MI near Traverse City, MI. Ask for the Michigan Alternative Education Association rate of $90 per night. The Traverse City airport, Cherry Capital, is served by American, Northwest, United and Skyway airlines. The conference will begin Wednesday, April 28 with a 7:00 p.m. reception and end on Saturday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.

This is a departure from the summertime for the annual conference. Mark your calendars. More information to follow.