EDUCATION
CHARTER SCHOOLS, RANKED BY ENROLLMENT
Top 10 GREAT HEARTS ACADEMIES 3102 N. 56th St., Suite 300, Phoenix, 85018 // 602-438-7045 // greatheartsaz. org FOUNDED 2002 AZ EMPLOYEES 749 ENROLLMENT 9,300 AZ CAMPUSES 19 PRINCIPAL Erik Twist, CEO HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Katie Cobb, senior vice president of advancement IMAGINE SCHOOLS 1843 West 16th Ave., Apache Junction, 85220 // 480-355-0502 // imagineschools. com FOUNDED 2004 AZ EMPLOYEES 700 ENROLLMENT 9,000 AZ CAMPUSES 13 PRINCIPAL Monte Lange, executive vice president HIGHESTRANKING WOMEN Heidi Lindsay, Sherry Ruttinger regional directors BASIS CHARTER SCHOOLS 7975 N. Hayden Road, Suite B100, Scottsdale, 85258 // 480-2892088 // basisschools.org; basised.com FOUNDED 1998 AZ EMPLOYEES 875 ENROLLMENT 8,600 AZ CAMPUSES 12 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHESTRANKING WOMAN Olga Block, co-founder LEGACY TRADITIONAL CHARTER SCHOOLS 3201 S. Gilbert Road, Chandler, 85286 // 480-270-5438 // legacytraditional.org FOUNDED 2007 AZ EMPLOYEES 650 ENROLLMENT 8,200 AZ CAMPUSES 9 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Paula Jensen, superintendent
ONE MISSION: COLLEGE
OLGA BLOCK CO-FOUNDER BY SHARI LOPATIN
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Olga Block believes “nothing is for free, and if you want to succeed, you have to work very hard.” She would know. Two years after moving to the United States from Prague, Block co-founded BASIS Charter Schools on this very philosophy with her husband, Michael Block, a now-retired University of Arizona professor. In 2014, the Oganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ranked BASIS students’ test scores above some of the highest-ranked school systems in the world. For reading, math and science, BASIS students even scored higher than those in Shanghai, China, which Block says has the best education system in the world. “Our mission is to prepare students for college,” Block says. “We believe everyone can succeed. This is a school for anybody who works really hard.” Before coming to the U.S., Block taught economics at Charles University in Prague. In 1991, she took an opportunity to attend Cornell University for a year, where she learned about higher education in the U.S. When she returned to Prague, she introduced many new concepts to her country’s educational system, including the idea of electives. After she married Michael and
moved to the U.S., Block’s experiences with her daughter’s education in Tucson’s public schools inspired her to start her own. She liked that the teachers treated her daughter kindly and taught her to be open, but Block was concerned about the school’s academic standards, especially in math. “I thought I could do much better with students academically, while still keeping the spirit of the American public school,” Block says. Block and her husband founded BASIS in 1998. Over the past 17 years, the charter school has grown to include 18 schools nationwide, with 12 in Arizona and one in Washington D.C. And Block believes her schools’ expectations are increasing academic standards throughout Arizona. “I really believe that in order to prevent students from leaving to (attend) BASIS, schools are trying to change their academic programs” to align with the BASIS standards, she says. “The major feature we are pushing through our culture is to really make students believe that knowledge matters.” She is passionate about that goal. When asked what she does for fun, Block merely says skiing and running BASIS with her husband. “At this point, it’s kind of a family business,” she says.
EDKEY, INC. (A.K.A. SEQUOIA SCHOOLS) 1460 S. Horne, Mesa, 85204 // 480-461-3200 // edkey.org FOUNDED 1996 AZ EMPLOYEES 724 ENROLLMENT 5,514 AZ CAMPUSES 17 PRINCIPAL Doug Pike, CEO HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Tamara Becker, assistant superintendent PRIMAVERA ONLINE HIGH SCHOOL & MIDDLE SCHOOL 2471 N. Arizona Ave., Chandler, 85225 // 480456-6678 // gothighschool.com, gotmiddleschool.com FOUNDED 2001 AZ EMPLOYEES 258 ENROLLMENT 5,500 AZ CAMPUSES online + blended learning facility PRINCIPAL Damian Creamer, CEO and founder HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Maveonian “Mori” Creamer, superintendent/chief operating officer AMERICAN CHARTER SCHOOLS FOUNDATION 7878 N. 16th St., Phoenix, 85020 // 602-943-4456 // acsfoundation.org ENROLLMENT 4092 AZ CAMPUSES 10 PRINCIPAL Theodore C. Frederick, director, president, and CEO HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Gina Conflitti, treasurer EDUPRIZE SCHOOLS 580 W. Melody Ave., Gilbert, 85233 // 480-813-9537 // eduprizeschools.net FOUNDED 1995 AZ EMPLOYEES 400 ENROLLMENT 3,860 AZ CAMPUSES 2 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHESTRANKING WOMAN Lynn Robershotte, co-founder, superintendent BENJAMIN FRANKLIN CHARTER SCHOOLS 320 E. Warner Rd., Gilbert //480-632-0722 // benjaminfranklincharterschool.com FOUNDED 1995 AZ EMPLOYEES 200 ENROLLMENT 2,800 AZ CAMPUSES 4 PRINCIPAL Eddie Farnsworth, executive director HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Dr. Rebekah Baker, director of curriculum and instruction ARIZONA CONNECTIONS ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOL 335 E. Germann Road, Suite 140, Gilbert, 85297 // 480-782-5842 // connectionsacademy.com/ arizona-school FOUNDED 2003 AZ EMPLOYEES 63 ENROLLMENT 2,100 AZ CAMPUSES 1 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Kerri Wright, principal
WHO’S WHO IN BUSINESS // 2015
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