Multi-year foundation funding totaling $1.25 million allowed the creation of the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) at the University of Rochester in 1999. It was guided by one of the country’s leading education economists, Eric Hanushek, and a distinguished advisory board.
Later moved to Stanford University, CREDO has become a leading source of reliable hard data on K-12 student performance and the cumulative effects of various school reforms. In particular, its studies of charter schools around the country quickly became the authoritative summaries of the strengths and weaknesses of the nation’s fastest-growing alternatives to conventional public schools. An initial 2009 study spanning 16 states was followed by a 2013 26-state update (drawing on the records of a million and a half charter-school students), and by profiles of many particular regions.
By providing a whole new level of detail and sophistication to understanding of the effects of charter schools, the CREDO studies have become the baseline evidence on charter results. Continuing updates on the mushrooming sector are planned, with recent support from the Walton Family Foundation and Pearson Learning Systems.
- CREDO at Stanford University, credo.stanford.edu