A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF TWO EXPANDING URBAN CHARTER SCHOOL ORGANIZATIONS

Abstract

Charter school expansion is on the forefront of educational reform. There is currently little research on what issues charter school organizations face when they expand, how specific organizational structures are implemented during a charter school expansion process, and which structures provide a favorable outcome of the expansion. The overall goal of this study was an in-depth analysis of two expanding charter schools. This qualitative two-site case study examined several select issues that charter schools face during expansion, with the goal of identifying differences in approach, and evaluating outcomes of the expansion in the light of these differences. Two urban charter school organizations within the same city were chosen for this case study. The following are the four specific research questions addressed: 1) What issues did the selected charter school organizations face when they were expanding? 2) What type of organizational system did the charter schools have and how did that system facilitate their expansion? 3) How was information communicated during the Charter School Organizations' expansion? 4) How did the selected charter school organizations handle heightened turbulence during the expansion period? The primary sources were: 1) data obtained through interviews with three school administrators within each organization; and, 2) data collected via questionnaires in order to determine administrator's approaches to decision making, strategic plans, and communication flow within each organization. The data were analyzed and the research reflects an in-depth analysis of the varying level of turbulence experienced by each charter school organization including factors and decisions that impacted each organization's expansion process. The findings indicate that there are a variety of internal factors and external obstacles that charter school organizations must consider and ultimately overcome before and during a charter school organizational expansion. The results of these findings suggest that each organization experienced varying levels of turbulence when expanding due to a multitude of factors including relationships with stakeholders, community support, school performance, as well as the availability of resources including students, facilities, finances, and staff. Ironically, the levels of turbulence experienced by each charter school organization were quite different given the variety of factors that impacted each charter school organization's expansion. Additionally, there were only a few areas in which each charter school organization experienced similar levels of turbulence to one another. These findings indicate that while at times each charter school organization may have faced different levels of turbulence, given a variety of internal and external factors, it did not appear that these varying levels of turbulence prevented either charter school organization from expanding. Furthermore, the degree of turbulence experienced by different individuals within iv each charter school organization, based upon their positionality, was influenced by a multitude of factors that are both controllable and uncontrollable. These factors that impact the level of turbulence experienced by each organization include the organizational structure, stakeholder involvement, and the flow of communication. The benefit of this study is to better understand the variety of factors both internal and external that influence and contribute to a charter school expansion and to better understand the varying degrees of turbulence experienced by all stakeholders involved in a charter school while the organization is expanding. The results of this study provide insight regarding varying factors charter school organizations should consider when expanding and how decisions are made and communicated to all stakeholders while simultaneously considering the impact these decisions have on all individuals.