Gerard Robinson
Key Player
President, Black Alliance for Educational OptionsGerard Robinson is the president of the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO). Prior to joining BAEO, he served as a senior research associate for the School Choice Demonstration Project at the University of Arkansas (2006-2007). Robinson was a senior fellow at the Institute for the Transformation of Learning at Marquette University from 2004 to 2006.
While Robinson strongly advocates charter schools, he emphasizes that they are not perfect. In a 2007 speech to educators in Little Rock, Arkansas, Robinson said that, like businesses, not all charter schools are great. But charter schools, unlike traditional public schools, must perform or else they will be out of business.
In a 2008 National Alliance for Public Charter Schools issue brief, “The Color of Success: Black Student Achievement in Public Charter Schools,” Robinson and co-author Edwin Chan analyzed studies showing how African-American students in public charter schools are outperforming their counterparts in traditional public schools.
To sustain this momentum, Robinson and Chan recommend that charter school operators create a high expectation of success focused around a mission-driven curriculum. They also encourage schools to get more involved with their surrounding communities by partnering with community organizations.