LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) The U.S. Department of Education has awarded a $23 million grant to a nonprofit to expand charter schools in Arkansas over five years.
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports the money was awarded to the Arkansas Public School Resources Center. The center will receive an initial $5.6 million to begin the expansion project.
The center’s executive director, Scott Smith, says the grant could support up to 30 new charter schools in Arkansas. He says the focus will be on poor and academically challenged populations.
The Little Rock-based center is a membership organization that offers technical support, resources and training to public schools with an emphasis on charter and rural schools. The center partnered with the Arkansas Department of Education on the grant.
The grant is part of the federal Charter Schools Program State Entities Competition.
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