RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina could hand over some of its failing elementary schools to charter school operators in an effort to reverse dismal test scores in more than half the state's counties.
Similar reforms have taken hold in New Orleans and Tennessee, and a handful of other southern states are considering bringing in charter operators to run their worst schools.
North Carolina's proposal closely resembles a Tennessee Achievement School District that has shown little improvement since it began in 2012.
Experts say the strategy has shown mixed results and relies on circumstance and community support to be successful.
North Carolina educators say the real problem is poverty, and public schools need more resources to address health care and teacher retention in low-income regions.
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