The Newark Charter School Fund (NCSF) today announced the hirings of four new staff members whose experience and expertise will contribute to the Fund’s mission of developing and supporting high quality charter schools in Newark. The new staff members are Rana Khan, vice president of policy and new schools; Lisa Keise Miller, vice president of quality schools; Aileen Philbrick, chief of staff; and Akua Hill, program associate for new schools and policy.

“Rana, Lisa, Aileen and Akua all bring unique perspectives and experiences that will strengthen the Newark Charter School Fund family,” said Mashea Ashton, CEO of NCSF. “Their contributions will help us meet our goal that all Newark kids should have access to high-quality schools, regardless of economic status.”

Rana Khan is the former chief of staff to the executive director of office of space planning at the New York City Department of Education, where she managed special citywide initiatives and projects as they related to space planning within both instructional and administration sites. She currently serves as a founding board member of Great Oaks Charter schools in Newark, which is currently in co-located district space.

Lisa Keise Miller brings more than 10 years of experience in education reform and private mission-driven enterprises, most recently as the New York/New Jersey regional vice president for Revolution Foods, a national provider of nutritious meals for schools through the National School Lunch Program. She is a former New Jersey public high school science teacher.

Aileen Philbrick joins NCSF after 14 years at EdisonLearning Inc., a leading international educational solutions provider, where she served in various capacities and leadership roles, most recently as vice president of business systems. She was part of the EdisonLearning team behind launching the diverse provider model in the School District of Philadelphia in 2002.

Akua Hill has a background in youth and community engagement, including serving on the Child and Youth Master Plan Task Force to organize key community members and non-profit executives in creating a comprehensive plan for Nashville, Tenn. Her international experience, including service in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, will bring a fresh perspective to NCSFs efforts to attain strategic goals with a focus on research and due diligence. Hill will report to Vice President of Policy and New Schools Rana Khan.

"The NPS analysis released today, as well as the recent CREDO study, show that Newark charter schools are producing significant gains for Newark students," Ashton said. "The results produced by Newark charter schools highlighted in recent studies can't be explained away by simply saying charter schools are serving a different population. When both the NPS analysis and the CREDO analysis controlled for students served, charters still perform strongly.

"It is exciting to see this independent analysis from CREDO confirm that Newark charters are producing positive and meaningful results for their students. This is consistent with what we see and support in classrooms across the city," said Mashea Ashton, the CEO of the Newark Charter School Fund.

"These results also emphasize the need to ensure that charters are offering these opportunities to all students in Newark and redoubling their efforts to collaborate with traditional public schools. Working in partnership with Superintendent Anderson and armed with these new findings, NCSF will continue to support reforms that ensure all students in Newark succeed regardless of the type of school they attend."

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Mashea Ashton, the CEO of the Newark Charter School Fund, issued the following statement regarding Newark School's Superintendent Cami Anderson's decision to veto the Newark Public Schools Advisory Board's vote on charter school leases. 

"Superintendent Cami Anderson should be applauded for making the tough decision to veto the school advisory board. Her decision to approve charter leases will expand the number of high quality public school options for all Newark students.

"Although the superintendent in Newark has the power to veto the advisory board, we believe this power should be exercised judiciously. In this case, it was without a doubt the right decision. It does not make sense for the district to maintain half-empty buildings while high-performing charters as well as new charters poised for breakthrough results cannot find space in the city to educate Newark children.

"What has become lost in this debate is that charter schools are public schools, funded with public dollars, educating the same Newark children as traditional district schools. It's time to put politics aside and move forward with this plan that will benefit all students in Newark."

The Newark Charter School Fund is hosting a first-ever Charter High School Fair for Newark students who want to learn more about their high school choices.

The fair is open to all Newark students and parents, particularly seventh and eighth graders looking to learn more about their high school options. In addition, some Newark charters have spots available students who will be sophomores next school year.

The two-day conference, to be attended by more than 700 educators, parents and supporters of New Jersey's growing charter school movement, will spotlight the many achievements of the state's charter schools and feature discussions among state and national leaders about how charter schools are transforming public education.

NEWARK -- The Newark Charter School Fund today applauded the work of the Christie administration for securing a $14.5 million U.S. Department of Education grant to support the expansion and replication of high quality charter schools in New Jersey.

The compact was developed by the Newark Charter School Fund, a three-year old organization committed to increasing the number of high-quality schools in Newark by improving charter schools, expanding successful schools, and developing promising new schools.

NEWARK, NJ – June 13, 2011 – Mashea Ashton, the CEO of the Newark Charter School Fund, released the following statement about a revised proposal from Newark Public Schools Superintendent Cami Anderson to share underutilized district schools with public charter schools.

NEWARK, NJ – May 4, 2011 – The selection of Cami Anderson as the next superintendent of the Newark Public Schools is receiving the strong support of the Newark Charter School Fund (www.ncsfund.org). But, fund officials caution, Newarkers must recognize that one person can’t be relied upon to change the culture of the entire school district.

NEWARK, NJ – December 20, 2010 – Mashea Ashton, the CEO of the Newark Charter School Fund, released the following statement on Gov. Chris Christie’s nomination of Christopher Cerf as commissioner of the state Department of Education:

"Chris Cerf is an excellent choice to serve as New Jersey's next Commissioner of Education. We at the Newark Charter School Fund look forward to working with him.