Earlier this week, the California Network of Educational Charters (CANEC) unveiled a new accreditation program in an attempt to introduce a measure of self-evaluation and
-regulation among the network's 300 charter schools. The unprecedented program - which will be piloted by a dozen schools this year, with over 100 expected to participate next year - comes in response to recent press about a handful of "bad apple" charter schools that hurts public opinion about all charter schools and prompted California lawmakers to impose new regulations on them. CANEC will work in conjunction with the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the primary accreditation organization for public and private schools in the western U.S., to evaluate the schools and offer a seal of approval to those that pass. "Charter schools try self-regulation," by Suzanne Pardington, Contra Costa Times, October 15, 2002
