Published In

Educational Policy

Document Type

Pre-Print

Publication Date

3-31-2025

Subjects

Charter schools -- education, Educational policy research

Abstract

Charter schools were originally envisioned as laboratories of innovation, but we have scant empirical evidence of how charter policies and ideas have spread beyond charter walls into the wider educational landscape. The diffusion of knowledge reflects networks of power, and tracing diffusion can unearth the discursive and power dynamics at play. Using a systematic search of publicly-available documents, this study investigated the geographic diffusion of one Charter Management Organization (CMO)—Uncommon Schools—as a case of charter discursive diffusion. Grounded in Critical Policy Analysis (CPA), we found that artifacts were located disproportionately in higher poverty zip codes housing lower percentages of non-Hispanic white people. We argue that our findings reveal how the diffusion of charter school discourse constructs a specific type of education that targets socio-economically disadvantaged students of Color. Further, this discourse imagines policies that reaffirm inequalities and the production of unjust geographies.

Rights

© Copyright the author(s) 2025

Description

This is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published as: Reform for “These” Kids: Neoliberal Reform, Theorized Target Populations, and Spatial Injustice. Educational Policy.

DOI

10.1177/08959048251326829

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/43587

Publisher

SAGE Publications

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